Lax immigration policies in deep blue Colorado are helping Tren de Aragua, one of the most vicious migrant gangs in America, to use the state as a “command and control” center, according to the acting head of the DEA.
A representative for the DEA Rocky Mountain Division confirmed with Fox News statements by DEA Acting Administrator Derek Maltz on local outlet Denver 7, in which Maltz said Colorado is “ground zero for some of the most violent criminals in America,” including Tren de Aragua’s leadership.
Tren de Aragua – also known by its acronym “TdA” – is a violent Venezuelan criminal group that has been linked to some of the most egregious crimes in America in recent years, including the murder of nursing student Laken Riley and the capturing of an apartment building in Aurora, Colorado.
On his first day in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the State Department to designate TdA a “foreign terrorist organization.”
DEA Acting Administrator Derek Maltz, armed members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis (Leigh Vogel/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Wikimedia Commons/Gage Skidmore/Edwin Romero)
“Now, we are learning that the command and control for TdA in the entire United States of America is right here in Colorado,” Maltz told the outlet.
He said this information was based on new intelligence from the “men and women on the front lines and what we’re seeing.”
Maltz said the laws of Democratic-run Colorado have allowed TdA and other criminals to “take advantage of vulnerabilities and weaknesses” to perpetuate their crimes.
“Anybody that thinks it’s a good idea to open up the border to adversaries around the world and then not even know who they are coming into our communities, it makes no sense,” he said, adding, “People in this state have allowed illegal violent criminals in here at record levels.”
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Police search for evidence in apartment buildings in Aurora, Colorado on Dec. 17, 2024. The dwellings were the scene of a reported home invasion overnight. (Fox News Digital)
Maltz called on state leaders to stop playing politics and instead help take violent criminal immigrants off the streets.
“The politics have to stop. This is not a red or blue issue, this is a red, white and blue issue,” he said. “We have to start thinking about our citizens first.”
Maltz also had some very pointed words for those criticizing or attempting to stand in the way of the federal government’s immigration crackdown.
“Why don’t you thank law enforcement instead of being ‘Monday morning quarterbacks’ sitting at home and being critics?” he asked. “Why don’t you ask the politicians in the state of Colorado why they are not uniting, why they are fighting the force of good that’s going after evil?”
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Tren de Aragua (TdA) members arrested in Texas (Tren de Aragua (TdA) members arrested in Texas)
“Wake up, pay attention,” he went on. “Talk to the citizens that can’t go out of their house at night when gunshots are going off, talk to people that are being extorted, talk to people that are being kidnapped and raped, talk to people that are being impacted every day.”
Despite the criticism, Maltz said the federal government is “connecting the dots” and taking a “whole of government” approach to finally crack down on TdA and other migrant criminals, regardless of Colorado’s laws.
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“I’m proud to report that right now, the cartels, the MS-13, the violent gangs like Tren de Aragua, they’re going to be held accountable, and they’re already being held accountable,” he said.
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Prison guards transfer deportees from the U.S., alleged to be Venezuelan gang members, to the Terrorism Confinement Center in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on Sunday, March 16. (El Salvador presidential press office via AP)
“I’ve got a warning for the TdA members,” he added, “start running now.”
“The team of the DEA, working with their partners from FBI, ATF, HSI, ICE ERO and our state and local counterparts, it’s a team that takes public safety and national security serious and they’ve already proven what they can do,” he said. “So they better go and find another state because they are not welcome here in Colorado.”
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Colorado’s two Democratic senators, Michael Bennett and John Hickenlooper, did not respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment by the time of publication.
President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Jared Polis at the White House. (Leigh Vogel/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Eric Maruyama, a representative for Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, responded to Maltz’s statements by telling Fox News Digital that the state “works with the DEA all the time on criminal investigations and to apprehend violent offenders and fugitives whether they are here legally or illegally.”
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Maruyama instead placed the blame for the crisis on the federal government, saying, “The reality is that Congress and the federal government for years have failed to fix our broken immigration system, secure our border, and create pathways to citizenship for people.”
“Gov. Polis is focused on improving public safety and has signed comprehensive laws to crack down on illegal gun crimes, get fentanyl off the streets, and recruit and retain more law enforcement,” he claimed. “When it comes to criminal investigations or prosecutions, Colorado works closely with all federal partners, in accordance with state and federal law, to fight crime and enhance public safety.”