DENVER — Heavily armed federal agents raided apartment buildings across metro Denver early Wednesday in a search for Venezuelan gang members and other migrants under the Trump administration's mass deportation effort targeting major cities.
At least two dozen officers carrying high-powered weapons stormed several complexes before sunrise. In some cases, they were backed by large, military-style vehicles.
The Department of Homeland Security said on social media that it was targeting 100 members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua for arrest and detention. It did not say how many people were taken into custody.
The operation included officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the FBI; the Drug Enforcement Administration; and the Bureau of Tobacco, Alcohol, Firearms and Explosives.
ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The administration has said that its main targets are convicted criminals but that noncriminals could also be detained during raids.
Witnesses said that they were caught off-guard by the agents descending on their homes and that many hid in their apartments, afraid federal agents would barge in. Many refused to answer their doors when officers knocked.
At an apartment complex in Denver, a 31-year-old Venezuelan man said that shortly after 5 a.m., ICE agents and other federal officers began yelling and loudly banging on every door.
The man, who asked that his name be withheld because he was afraid of being deported, said residents discreetly peered out their windows as large trucks and unmarked vehicles entered the parking lot.
Several residents said eight people were arrested at the complex.
People “hid with fear,” “didn’t open their doors” and remained “quiet without saying anything,” he said after all the agents had left.
He said many of his neighbors have pending asylum applications or other forms of temporary protection from deportation, “but none of that matters to them,” referring to immigration authorities.
“We don’t know if even with having an asylum case, they’ll just take us and deport us,” he said. “We’re living with fear and uncertainty because we don’t know if they’ll come back for us.”
Mayor Mike Johnston said in a statement that he was aware an immigration enforcement action was taking place at a Denver apartment complex.
“We are in contact with Denver Public Schools and other city partners and have confirmed that there has not been any activity in schools, hospitals, or churches,” Johnston said. “Denver Police and city authorities were not involved in these actions, nor were we given prior notice. We will continue to monitor these activities throughout the day.”
A Colombian immigrant at the Cedar Run apartment complex, one of three that was raided in nearby Aurora, said he was leaving the building around 7 a.m. to take his daughter to school when he saw a large number of federal agents surrounding the building.
He immediately turned around and went back upstairs to his apartment. Federal agents walked the hallways of the building for several hours, repeatedly knocking loudly on doors, identifying themselves as “immigration” and asking people to come outside.
The immigrant and his family opted to remain silent and not open their door.
