Aurora, Colorado, is increasing its police force to combat the increasing gang activity.
The city’s proposed 2025 budget includes a $125 million increase in funding, with $10 million set aside for boosting law enforcement.
Under the proposed budget, the city’s law enforcement would be allocated nearly $165 million.
“Right now, we are not at our full complement of officers,” Aurora Police Department Chief Todd Chamberlain told CBS News. “Our patrol is impacted by understaffing issues, and so that’s what I’m looking at right now.”
“I want to be able to have our officers have a clear understanding of what they are responding to before they even get there,” he said. “I want to see where our crimes are occurring, when they’re occurring and who they are occurring to.”
The funding boost for police comes as the migrant gang Tren de Aragua has taken over apartment units.
One local business owner, Doug McMurrain, said he has begun to carry a weapon, something he “never” had to do previously, due to the rise in crime.
“We need more police. If it takes more money, 10 million is a drop in the hat,” he said. “They have a hard job. We need more officers.”
