More than 100 undocumented immigrants were detained by federal agents in Colorado Springs early Sunday morning during a raid of an illegal, underground nightclub, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Between 200 and 300 people were inside the club, and 114 of them were living in Colorado illegally, said Steffan Tubbs, a spokesman for the DEA’s Rocky Mountain Division. More than a dozen active duty military members were also inside the club as patrons or security guards, he said.
The raid, which had reportedly been in development for months, started at about 3:45 a.m. Sunday at 296 South Academy Blvd. in Colorado Springs, the state’s second-largest city and about 70 miles south of Denver.
Videos posted by the on social media showed federal agents announcing their presence and ordering people out of the building.
“Occupants of 296 South Academy, this is the police with a search warrant demanding entry,” . “Exit the front door one at a time with nothing in your hands, held high above your head. Listen to the commands of the officers on site.”
He then repeated the orders in Spanish.
Other videos from the agency showed hundreds of patrons being with their hands raised or after federal agents broke a window.
Later, people as agents processed the patrons and checked their citizenship statuses before the 114 detainees headed for immigration facilities. DEA officials said they faced “.”
“Nothing good ever happens after 3 a.m.,” on social media.
The last time the DEA’s Rocky Mountain Division announced a large bust — when 41 people were detained by ICE in January at what officials dubbed a “Tren de Aragua party” at a makeshift nightclub in Adams County — no charges were ever filed and the agency never released how many were put into deportation proceedings.
As of Sunday evening, the 114 people in federal custody were still being processed, ICE spokesperson Steve Kotecki said.
Kotecki declined to answer questions about the detainees’ countries of origin, when — or if — deportation proceedings would begin and where the individuals were being processed and detained.
“Today’s operation sends a clear message: illegal activity will not be tolerated in El Paso County,” the county’s Board of Commissioners said in an emailed statement to The Denver Post.
Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade said he was briefed about the raid ahead of time by the federal agencies.
“Let me be clear: criminal activity of any kind, from anyone, will not be tolerated in Colorado Springs,” Mobolade said in a . “This investigation and the execution of these warrants are the result of clear evidence of serious criminal conduct. Our residents deserve to live in a city where the rule of law is upheld and where illegal behavior is met with firm and decisive action.”
Several others not taken into ICE custody were arrested on outstanding state warrants, DEA spokesperson Tubbs said. Everyone who was not detained by ICE, an active duty military member or arrested on outstanding warrants was released, he said.
The Army’s Criminal Investigation Division will be responsible for the military personnel who were inside or employed by the club, Tubbs said. That agency did not respond to requests for comment Sunday or confirm the number of service members involved.
Information on the number of people arrested on warrants and the type of warrants was not available on Sunday.
“Colorado Springs is waking up to a safer community today,” Jonathan Pullen, special agent in charge of the DEA’s Rocky Mountain Division, said in a Sunday morning .
Pullen said the underground, illegal nightclub was home to drug trafficking, prostitution and “crimes of violence” — crimes the active duty military members found inside the club were allegedly involved in.
Cocaine, meth and pink cocaine, also known “tusi,” were found inside the nightclub, which was allegedly frequented by members of the Tren de Aragua, MS-13 and Hell’s Angels gangs, U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a .
There’s “no way of knowing” how many of the people arrested Sunday were affiliated with those gangs, at least at this point, Tubbs said.
While many of the club-goers detained on Sunday will face federal immigration proceedings, it’s unlikely federal drug charges will be filed because of the difficulty in proving possession during the bust, Pullen said.
“When the cops showed up at the door, most of the drugs hit the floor,” Pullen said. That includes “dozens of small packages” of unidentified drugs, he said.
Pullen said an undisclosed number of guns were also seized.
“Because we have so many people in custody, we’re working through a lot of the information about who’s who,” Pullen said at the news conference.
More than 300 federal officers executed the raid, including agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration, ICE, Homeland Security Investigations, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Marshals Service, Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Colorado Springs police officers, El Paso County sheriff’s deputies and Douglas County sheriff’s deputies were also on scene, according to the DEA.
Colorado Springs Chief of Police Adrian Vasquez said the department’s only role in the raid was addressing the illegal nightclub’s criminal violations.
“CSPD is aware that our federal partners also detained multiple people for suspected immigration violations during the operation,” Vasquez said in a . “CSPD is not authorized to conduct immigration enforcement under Colorado law, and our participation in this operation was solely to address criminal violations affecting the safety of our community.”
Pullen said more operations were “pending” across Colorado Springs on Sunday and it was unclear if more people would be arrested or detained.
Earlier this month, a federal judge in Colorado temporarily blocked the deportation of immigrants under the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act.
Under a new temporary restraining order the judge issued last Tuesday, which remains active, federal immigration officials must provide a 21-day notice if they plan to use the act to deport immigrants detained in Colorado, and detainees must be given a chance to contest their removal.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
