Active-duty service members were among those detained during a crackdown by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on an unlicensed, “underground” nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
About 200 people were in the venue when DEA agents, as well as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, raided the club early Sunday morning. The agencies seized drugs and weapons and detained 114 undocumented immigrants, the DEA said in a statement.
More than a dozen active-duty troops were at the nightclub, some as patrons and others working as security guards, the DEA said.
“We have some active-duty service members who were armed security guards,“ said Jonathan Pullen, the special agent in charge at the DEA’s Rocky Mountain Division.
The agency had been investigating the after-hours club for months and had witnessed prostitution, drug-trafficking and acts of violence, Pullen said in a news conference.
When asked by local news station KOAA 5 whether the service members knew about the illegal acts happening in the club, Pullen responded, “I think everybody who goes into a nightclub at 3 o’clock in the morning knows what they’re getting into.”
The Army confirmed Monday the troops were stationed at nearby Fort Carson, a post located just south of Colorado Springs that’s host to the 4th Infantry Division.
“Fort Carson leaders are aware of the Drug Enforcement Administration-led operation that occurred at an illegal night club in Colorado Springs early Sunday morning,” a Fort Carson spokesperson said. ”We acknowledge that there were some Fort Carson service members present at the location during the operation.”
The spokesperson said Army leadership will look at each of the service members’ situations on a case-by-case basis, adding that they are all presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The Army did not share the number of service members detained in the raid.
“Illegal activities of any kind do not represent our military values,” the spokesperson said. “We will continue to work in coordination with our federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to ensure our community is safe.”
Attorney General Pamela Bondi posted about the large-scale operation Sunday on social media, alleging members of the criminal gangs Tren de Aragua and MS-13 frequented the venue.
“As we approach his 100 days in office, Trump’s directive to make America safe again is achieving results!” Bondi said.
The 114 undocumented immigrants who were detained during the raid were put onto buses for processing “and likely eventual deportation,” the DEA said.
Nikki Wentling is a senior editor at Military Times. She’s reported on veterans and military communities for nearly a decade and has also covered technology, politics, health care and crime. Her work has earned multiple honors from the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, the Arkansas Associated Press Managing Editors and others.
Read the full article here
