This X screen shot, captured from a video posted on Aug. 28, allegedly shows various armed gang members taking over an apartment complex in Aurora, Colorado. (@vicentearenastv / X Screen Shot)
Property management company CBZ calls out Democrat-led Aurora government for failing to protect properties from gang takeover, scapegoating the company instead of taking accountability.
On August 28, a letter directed to Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser highlighted the severity of the situation when it reported that CBZ Management had been alerted to the fact that the Aurora apartment complex had been “forcibly taken control of by gang(s)” of Venezuelan invaders.
Instead of promptly investigating these claims, city officials downplayed the matter, dismissing the complaints as “diversionary tactics” and “alternative narratives.”
Colorado Governor Jared Polis dismissed the very real concerns of Aurora residents regarding the takeover of local apartment complexes by the notorious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
Polis arrogantly dismissed the outcry as mere “imagination” despite overwhelming evidence, including video footage, police reports, and confirmation from the city’s mayor.
The Gateway Pundit previously reported that Fitzsimon’s apartment complex in Aurora, Colorado was forced to close its doors, displacing hundreds of families who have called the building home.
The takeover is the direct result of the Biden-Harris regime’s dangerous open borders policies, which have allowed criminals to pour into the country unchecked.
CBZ Property Management, a company managing properties in both Colorado and New York, has come forward to blast Democrat leadership in Aurora, Colorado, for their inaction amidst a growing crisis.
The company alleges that gangs have taken control of several of their properties, and instead of addressing the issue, city officials have scapegoated CBZ in an effort to dodge accountability.
In a statement released by CBZ, the company explained that they began managing the affected Aurora properties in 2019 after new owners took over.
The buildings were in poor condition, and CBZ’s mission was to renovate them to improve both property values and the community.
Their efforts initially proved successful, as property values increased and vacancy rates dropped. But as the project progressed, a new and alarming challenge emerged.
Below is their full statement released on X:
Gangs have taken control of several of our properties in Aurora, Colorado. In an attempt to discredit this fact for political purposes and avoid governmental accountability, some have spread false information about our situation. Let’s set the record straight…
We started managing these buildings when new owners acquired the Colorado properties in 2019. At the time, the properties were in poor condition, and our mission was to renovate them, thereby increasing their value. This was an ambitious project that would significantly benefit the people of Aurora while providing returns to the new owners.
We understood this project would take years to yield results and would be both time-consuming and costly, involving comprehensive upgrades to every unit and the overall structure. To manage the project effectively, given our New York-based operations, our representative moved to Colorado with his family.
We also undertook a complete renovation of nearly every unit in the now well-known building you’ve seen in the news. (The images shown depict our newly renovated apartments.)
Everything was progressing smoothly: property values were rising, and vacancy rates were dropping. It was a win-win for both the owners and the city of Aurora. Then, the gangs arrived.
After some time, we noticed a rise in crime and tenant complaints. The most alarming moment occurred when our local CBZ representative was attacked at the end of 2023.
He had gone to inspect a recently vacated three-bedroom apartment (a rare occurrence for such a large unit) only to find a group of men already inside.
When he refused their $500 bribe to overlook the situation, they brutally attacked him. (This photo was taken shortly after he escaped, just before being admitted to the hospital.
The video footage comes from one of our security cameras, capturing part of the assault.)
After the attack on our CBZ representative, he began getting threatening text messages. We also frequently found people illegally occupying newly vacated apartments during scheduled tours.
This was initially attributed to an influx of migrants exploiting squatter laws. We even received a call from a tenant returning from vacation, only to find strangers living in his apartment.
This legitimate tenant was forced to find a new home after police couldn’t help him.
When confronted, many of these illegal tenants and squatters claimed they had already paid rent, which we soon realized was true—but not to us. They were paying rent to a different entity.
To address this entity (gangs), we contacted every city official we could think of for help with the problem. Unfortunately, none were willing to take meaningful action.
Meanwhile, our CBZ representative continued receiving threatening messages, in which these criminals revealed his home address and his spouse’s name.
Finally, the APD, FBI, and Homeland Security informed us that those sending the messages and controlling our buildings were part of the notorious Tren De Aragua gang from Venezuela.
They also mentioned that our situation was just “a blip on the radar,” as this gang is causing significant problems nationwide. Two days after our FBI meeting, the gang confronted our on-site manager, asserting control over all three properties.
They offered an ultimatum: share rental income 50/50 or lose the buildings permanently. They also threatened to harm him and his family.
For the safety of our management team and their families, we withdrew them from the properties and focused on seeking help from government agencies.
Once we fully understood what we—and our tenants—were facing, we expected a swift response, with the city offering meaningful resources and police protection—perhaps even from the National Guard—to help us regain control of our properties. That never happened.
Instead, we were left helpless, watching as violence, bullets, and destruction overtook our buildings. Many of our legitimate tenants fled out of fear.
Despite the obvious crisis, several city officials refused to acknowledge the reality.
Instead, they blamed us, citing “code violations” as the reason for shutting down our property—violations we couldn’t resolve for tenants who weren’t even ours.
Finally, one city councilwoman, Danielle Jurinsky, decided to take action after one of our last remaining legitimate tenants, Cindy Romero, reached out to her in desperation.
Luckily, Cindy had her own cameras (most of ours had been destroyed by the gangs) and provided video proof to the councilwoman. She realized the city could no longer ignore the situation if it was documented on camera.
Once she gathered sufficient video evidence, she assisted the tenant in relocating to safety before publicly releasing the footage.
Despite clear evidence, many still deny the reality of the situation, sometimes using us as scapegoats.
That’s why we are no longer staying silent. We will continue to counter falsehoods with simple facts and evidence.
Yes, gangs did take control of our apartment complexes in Aurora, Colorado, and the government did nothing. That is the real story. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.
[…]
The situation in Aurora, CO has gained attention, as gangs and illegal immigrants have taken control of our properties. However, the larger issue is that the government not only ignored the crisis but also scapegoated us to avoid accountability.
Where we stand now: Two of our properties in Aurora, CO remain under gang control.
By “gang control,” we mean that most or all of the rental income is diverted to a criminal enterprise comprised of gang members and illegal immigrants instead of the rightful property owners. A third building was shut down by the city for “code violations.”
[…]
Like many large, older properties, code violations can happen. We have always addressed them promptly. Our track record proves this. In 2023, we passed 3 full building inspections that included a detailed walk-through of every unit.
So how does the city shut down 99 apartments for code violations after declaring everything up to code? Because it wasn’t about code violations—it was about a criminal takeover of our buildings and the city’s refusal to address it, instead choosing to blame us.
The real issue is the rise in crime in Aurora, illegal immigration, and the city’s attempt to shift the blame onto us. Attached is a letter from the Aurora Chief of Police, threatening to shut down our property by labeling it a criminal nuisance.
The letter states, “property owners are expected to be vigilant in preventing or deterring crime.” However, we believe crime prevention and deterrence are primarily the police’s responsibility.
Notably, our representative was attacked in the building by gang members less than two months after we received this letter. This is what happens when the police fail to take responsibility and instead place the burden on property managers.
We sought help before the situation escalated to where we stand today, believing other government officials were unaware of what was happening to our buildings. We contacted everyone in power we thought could help. We asked for help from the governor, the mayor, and the Attorney General.
When a lender became involved with one of the properties, they expressed skepticism about our narrative.
They questioned how a criminal enterprise could operate unchecked in the United States while government officials either ignored the situation or blamed the property managers.
To address these concerns, the lender hired an independent law firm, Perkins Coie, to conduct an investigation. They titled their nine-page report, which was shared with the Chief of Police, the Mayor, and the City Manager, “Tren de Aragua Takeover of Aurora Apartment Buildings.”
Are the issues in these buildings genuinely due to “code enforcement” violations? When anyone claims that the property owners made decisions based on increasing profitability or exploiting anyone, the data tell a very different story.
Numbers don’t lie! Instead of answering our call for help and addressing the crime, the police withheld key information. We had no idea we were dealing with an organized crime group until we later met with the FBI and Homeland Security, who told us the crimes on our properties were linked to a larger issue involving the Tren de Aragua cartel.
The bottom line is that the police failed to do their job, which allowed crime to escalate. When our tenants called for help, their calls were often ignored.
Our full-time management team, consisting of six members—four of whom lived on-site—faced the same difficulties in getting police to respond. Our on-site employees were threatened with death. The gang threatened to kill our on-site manager if he returned to the property.
Even the private security company we hired – at the request of the city – encountered challenges in getting law enforcement to respond. The issue persisted even after the video of the armed men in the stairwell went viral across America.
Here are multiple reports from our security company documenting many situations where they called to report suspicious activity and often waited many hours for police to arrive—often never showing up.
As mentioned, the same law enforcement failures were experienced by our tenants. Here’s Cindy Romero, a tenant, sharing her story about police neglect. “They left us there to die.”
Rather than tackling criminals who entered our country illegally, threatening our properties and the community, the mayor chose to label us as “out-of-state slumlords,” despite the fact we have local representation, employ locals, and have invested $1.3 million into upgrading these properties.
Even if we were from out-of-state, shouldn’t a mayor want to attract out-of-state investors to improve his city?
Now that the Walgreens near our property is shutting down, will the mayor call them “out-of-state drug lords”?
So sad to see another store shut down in Aurora! This is located between two of our properties that were taken over by gangs. Just recently Walmart and others shut its doors. A big loss for the community!
The mayor even blamed our nearby Walmart for their recent closure, suggesting that Walmart (not the police) was too soft on crime. If the city had fulfilled its basic responsibilities instead of deflecting blame, our $1.3 million investment could have contributed to revitalizing Aurora.
Instead, hardworking tenants lost their homes due to the city’s failure to protect them. As a result, we have been harmed, our lenders have suffered, and the City of Aurora is now under national scrutiny—rightfully so.
Furthermore, many in the media have played a role in obscuring this issue, which is why we are sharing our story directly. However, that’s a topic for another discussion, so stay tuned. There is much more to this story, and we will provide specific details backed by solid data.
The post Colorado Property Management Company Breaks Silence: Blasts Democrat Leadership for ‘Ignoring Crisis and Using Them as Scapegoats to Dodge Accountability’ appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
