Police: Man arrested in Aurora shooting is documented member of Venezuelan gang

DENVER (KDVR) — A man arrested late in July in connection with a shooting in Aurora is a documented member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, the Aurora Police Department confirmed Friday.

Jhonardy Jose Pacheco-Chirino, 22, also known as “Cookie” or “Galleta,” was arrested on July 28 after police responded to a shooting at about 4:30 a.m. outside of 1568 Nome St.

Two men were shot in the incident and a third was injured with a broken ankle.

Pacheco-Chirino was arrested in March this year in connection to an aggravated assault at the same address that happened in November of 2023. He bonded out.

Pacheco-Chirino has been in the custody of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement since his arrest on July 28.

According to police, Pacheco-Chirino is a documented member of Tren de Aragua, and his current status within the gang is unknown. On Friday, Department of Homeland Security sources confirmed to NewsNation that the individuals seen in a viral video holding firearms at a troubled Aurora apartment complex were members of the gang.

“APD continues to proactively and fully investigate criminal activity and its possible connections to criminal organizations and their members. Officers have been consistently monitoring areas of concern. We understand the distress our community is feeling, and we want to provide reassurance that we are committed to keeping our community safe and putting criminals in jail,” the police department said in a post on X .

The city of Aurora said the situations are isolated.

“Aurora is a safe place to live, work and visit. It is tragic that select individuals and entities have mischaracterized our city based on isolated incidents. We encourage you to build up our community and not allow the hysteria of others to tear it down,” the city wrote in a post on X .

The city urged members of the community to report all crimes to local law enforcement.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.