Report: Aurora crimes trending down but rising at gang-associated addresses

AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — Crime in Aurora has been making international headlines, with Venezuelan gang activity reported at several apartment complexes. But perception is one thing, and reality is another.

Overall crime totals are declining in Aurora, according to a new report from Common Sense Institute, an area think tank focused on free enterprise.

To see what’s going on with crime in Aurora, former Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey and Common Sense Institute wanted to look specifically at a handful of gang-associated addresses.

“What we did was we took those addresses to see if there’d been an uptick in crime,” Morrissey said.

What they found is that violent crime in Aurora has been trending down since 2022. But if you look closer at the specific addresses, which include the apartment complexes on Nome and Dallas streets that FOX31 has reported about, a different story emerges.

“We’re seeing the same kind of consistent increase in those particular addresses that we’re not seeing in other addresses across the city of Aurora,” Morrissey said.

Crime totals are doubling or in some cases nearly tripling at those locations.

Morrissey said while the uptick in crime at those addresses is a problem, it’s one more likely to be solved thanks to its isolation.

“When it’s isolated, law enforcement can focus on it and have an impact on it,” Morrissey said.

Aurora under gang control? ‘That’s just not correct’

He said keeping that crime isolated is a benefit for police, making it easier to locate and arrest suspects. He said the city may want to think twice before shutting down these complexes like it has suggested.

“You have to be careful. When you shut something like this down, where do the people go? Where do the gang members go?” he said.

Overall, Morrissey said while the crime increase in these apartments is troubling, the data shows things are generally trending in the right direction.

“When you see a headline that the city of Aurora is under control of a Venezuelan prison gang, that’s just not correct,” Morrissey said.

Morrissey said crime in those locations is likely even higher than in the report as well, with many incidents likely going unreported.

The report said that crime at the Dallas Street location alone has cost $700,000 to respond to.

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