More than 300 federal agents raided what the Drug Enforcement Administration described as a “underground nightclub” in Colorado Springs early Sunday morning, arresting at least 114 people.
CBS News reported that the operation involved agents from the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the IRS, the United States Army Criminal Investigation Division, and even the United States Postal Service, as well as local law enforcement.
Firearms and drugs were also seized during the raid, which occurred around 3:45 a.m.
President Donald Trump celebrated the raid on Truth Social, writing that it targeted “some of the worst people illegally in our country — drug dealers, murderers, and other violent criminals, of all shapes and sizes, and Judges do not want to send them back to where they came from.”
Stephen Miller, Deputy White House Chief of Staff for Policy and architect of Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda, claimed the “underground nightclub” was used by the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, according to X. The raid was a collaborative effort between the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security.
“Part of busting up the underground nightclub in Colorado Springs included the arrest of 114 illegal aliens,” according to the DEA. According to the agency, federal agents “placed patrons (in the U.S. illegally) on buses for processing and likely eventual deportation.”
“Drugs and weapons have also been seized at this underground nightclub in Colorado Springs,” the agency stated in another post.
Attorney General Pam Bondi also praised the raid, claiming that the “club” was not only “frequented” by Tren de Aragua but also by MS-13 gang members. Bondi described them as “terrorists.”
“Cocaine, meth, and pink cocaine were confiscated. “Two people were also arrested on outstanding warrants,” she said before praising Trump.
“As we approach his 100 days in office, @POTUS Trump’s directive to make America safe again is achieving results!” wrote the politician.
According to law enforcement officials, there were over 200 people inside.
The DEA shared footage on X of agents in tactical gear smashing a window as dozens of people exited the building, with some initially attempting to flee before being told to get on the ground by agents with weapons drawn.
According to the footage, many of them complied by raising their hands.
According to DEA officials, active-duty U.S. military personnel attended the party, some as patrons and others as private security personnel.
“It is obviously concerning to have active duty military involved,” DEA Rocky Mountain Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen stated.
Federal agents are collaborating with the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division, he stated.
“There is a lot of military bases here, so it is not necessarily surprising, but we are going to take that very seriously,” he told reporters.
So far, no one who was detained during the Colorado Springs raid has been publicly identified.
The arrests come after weeklong raids in Florida, where ICE officers worked alongside local police to make nearly 800 arrests in what officials called a “first of its kind” operation and a “preview of what is to come throughout the nation.”
Arrests were made Monday through Saturday as part of “Operation Tidal Wave,” according to an ICE statement. The agency described the operation as a “massive, multi-agency, immigration enforcement crackdown.”
As part of President Trump’s mass deportation agenda, federal law enforcement agencies have been deployed into communities across the country to expedite removals.
The agreement between ICE and local law enforcement is based on the agency’s 287(g) authority, which allows it to delegate immigration-related arrests to local police.
Approximately 200 Florida law enforcement agencies, including sheriff’s offices, city police departments, and college campus police departments, have signed 287(g) agreements with ICE, the most in any state.
On Truth Social, Trump stated that his administration will continue to fight a legal battle over the use of the Alien Enemies Act to summarily deport alleged Tren de Aragua gang members.
The justices stated that targeted immigrants must be given the opportunity to challenge the accusations leveled against them in the districts where they are detained before being removed.
“If we do not win this battle in the Supreme Court, our country as we know it will be finished! Trump wrote, “It will be a crime-ridden mess.”
Trump also addressed the arrest of Wisconsin judge Hannah Dugan, who was accused of obstructing justice after allegedly directing an immigrant out of her courtroom to avoid federal agents, who apprehended the man moments later.
“What happened was terrible,” Trump told reporters on Sunday. “That this could happen to a judge makes me very ashamed… Look, we need to reclaim our country from all of these criminals that Biden allowed to enter. These are world-class criminals and insane people, former inmates, murderers, drug addicts, and dealers.”
The president appeared to indicate that he sees judges and the legal system as impediments to his deportation agenda.
“And you know what? We have a country. We need to be proud of our country. “We can not let these people stay, and the courts are allowing them to,” he said. “We are just not going to allow it so, hopefully, the Supreme Court will come to the rescue of our country.”
