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‘Something is seriously wrong, and we’re going to try and fix it,’ APD Chief Chamberlain says in vision for future
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Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice

‘Something is seriously wrong, and we’re going to try and fix it,’ APD Chief Chamberlain says in vision for future

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice It was a long night for Todd Chamberlain and the Aurora Police Department. Oft the subject of news reports during the last year, The Edge at Lowry apartments were yet again the location of overnight police activity Tuesday, Dec. 17. This time, more than a dozen suspected Venezuelan gang members were arrested there in a home invasion. Two victims are hospitalized with non life-threatening injuries. Police are continuing to work toward identifying the suspects in custody, with their leader saying he wouldn't sleep until they did. "This is not an example that the city of Aurora is a gang-infested, drug-infested, crime-infested area," said Chamberlain, Aurora's new police chief. "There are definitely pockets that are problematic." He spent clo...
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Aurora picks Amsalu Kassaw to vacated at-large City Council seat
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, Local

Aurora picks Amsalu Kassaw to vacated at-large City Council seat

By Kyla Pearce | Colorado Politics via the Denver Gazette Aurora's councilmembers on Monday night picked a leader of the Ethiopian community for the council's at-large seat. The council split, 6-4, in appointing Amsalu Kassaw to the seat. The discussion at times delved into issues of race. Kassaw is the public relations director of the Ethiopian American Civic Council. He is also a lieutenant at GEO Group Inc.'s U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center in Aurora, according to his application for the seat. Mayor Mike Coffman has worked with Kassaw when he served on his congressional advisory committee. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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‘Bound, pistol-whipped, beat, victimized and terrorized’: Aurora PD chief describes home invasion
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‘Bound, pistol-whipped, beat, victimized and terrorized’: Aurora PD chief describes home invasion

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice More than a dozen persons were arrested overnight related to an armed home invasion in the 1200 block of Dallas St. in Aurora. "This is without question a gang incident," said Police Chief Todd Chamberlain. "It could be [Tren de Aragua], it could be [a gang] other than TdA. This is gang activity and there are Venezuelans involved." At about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 17, Aurora police responded to The Edge at Lowry Apartments related to the home invasion which began about six hours earlier with an estimated "13-15 armed individuals" holding two victims who were "bound, pistol-whipped, beat, victimized and terrorized," Chamberlain said. One victim was stabbed and both were kidnapped, being relocated from one place in the apartment complex to a...
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Company that owns three apartment complexes at heart of Aurora TdA gang concerns sues state AG
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, State

Company that owns three apartment complexes at heart of Aurora TdA gang concerns sues state AG

By Nicole C. Brambila | Denver Gazette vis Colorado Politics The owners of the troubled apartment complexes in Aurora have filed a lawsuit against Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser to block a subpoena for the company’s records in a civil investigation. Filed in Denver District Court last week by Brooklyn-based CBZ Management and its affiliated companies, the lawsuit also seeks a protective order to block the release of personal or financial information obtained in the subpoenas. Weiser declined comment. CBZ Management owns 11 properties in Colorado, including three apartment complexes in Aurora that nabbed national headlines for claims that a Venezuelan gang had taken over the buildings. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
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Colorado AG opens investigation into owners of apartments overrun by Venezuelan gang
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Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Colorado AG opens investigation into owners of apartments overrun by Venezuelan gang

By Nicole C. Brambila | Denver Gazette The Colorado Attorney General’s office is investigating the business practices of the Aurora apartment complex owners at the center of a political storm arising from illegal immigration and the tentacles of a Venezuelan prison gang in the metro area. Under the Colorado Consumer Protection Act, Assistant Attorney General Adam Rice issued a subpoena to the owners of CBZ Management to produce a myriad of records related to its properties. The demand included documents and information related to the company’s employees and leases, as well as property maintenance and the condition of units. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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Aurora councilmembers press 3 candidates for council seat about economy, health, public safety
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Aurora councilmembers press 3 candidates for council seat about economy, health, public safety

By Kyla Pearce | Denver Gazette Aurora councilmembers interviewed three top candidates for a council vacancy Monday night, pressing them about health, policing and public safety. The three candidates are Danielle Lammon, a business owner and chair of the Citizens Advisory Budget Committee; Jonathan McMillan, director of Firearm-Related Harm and Violence Prevention Program Office at the Trailhead Institute; and, Amsalu Kassaw, a lieutenant at Aurora's Immigration and Customs Enforcement  processing center.  READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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‘Operation Aurora is coming,’ Council member warns Aurora police chief, staff
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Approved, kdvr.com, Local

‘Operation Aurora is coming,’ Council member warns Aurora police chief, staff

By Heather Willard | Fox 31 News Aurora Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky spoke out in a November committee meeting to tell the police department, city council and city staff that President-elect Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan is “coming.” Jurinsky made the comments at a meeting of the Aurora City Council Public Safety, Courts and Civil Service Committee on Nov. 14, which she chairs. The committee meets monthly and will not meet again until 2025. Also at the meeting was new Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain, who was asked if the police agency needed support and more aid from surrounding agencies, such as the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office or the National Guard. He said that is not needed and would be a demoralizing move for his staff. REASD THE FULL STOR...
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Residents at Aurora apartments see improvements but face buyout offers they say are too low to relocate
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Approved, CBS Colorado, Local

Residents at Aurora apartments see improvements but face buyout offers they say are too low to relocate

By Michael Abeyta | CBS Colorado Earlier this year, the city of Aurora drew national attention because of gang activity at apartments owned by CBZ Management. Additional issues later came to light, including unsafe living conditions at several apartment complexes owned by CBZ. One of those was the Whispering Pines Apartments, which the city nearly shut down due to unsafe and unsanitary conditions. Now, things appear to be improving for residents. Aurelio, a resident who declined to provide his last name, lives at Whispering Pines. The complex is one of several formerly owned by CBZ that has been under receivership since the fall. He says he and his roommates like living there because it's affordable. READ THE FULL STORY AT CBS COLORADO
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Finalists Kassaw, Lammon and McMillan being interviewed for seat by Aurora councilmembers
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Finalists Kassaw, Lammon and McMillan being interviewed for seat by Aurora councilmembers

By Kyla Pearce | Denver Gazette Aurora city councilmembers will interview three top candidates for an open council seat on Monday, a process that will take about two-and-a-half hours and will be open to the public via livestream. Dustin Zvonek, the city's previous mayor pro tem, announced his early departure from his position on the council in October, opening up a seat on the 11-person body. The council received a total of 34 applications for the position and, at the last council meeting, chose three final candidates: Amsalu Kassaw, Danielle Lammon and Jonathan McMillan. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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Aurora lawmakers vote to go forward with repealing employee tax on businesses
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Aurora lawmakers vote to go forward with repealing employee tax on businesses

By Kyla Pearce | Denver Gazette Aurora lawmakers on Monday night decided to keep a promise made to businesses that they would repeal the occupational privilege tax, which taxes businesses for each employee. The decision came after a series of meetings during which councilmembers went back and forth on the issue and ended up in arguments with each other over whether they should keep the promise, made last year, or go back on it and keep the tax to fund new fire stations.  The occupational privilege tax collects $4 monthly from companies for each employee. Employers and employees split the dues, paying $2 respectively. The tax began in 1986 to support street maintenance, police and fire services. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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