A hotel in Texas According to legal documents, it could be closed after 693 police calls were made to the property in just two years for suspected illegal and gang-related activity.
The Gateway Hotel has received a temporary and permanent injunction from the El Paso County Attorney’s Office to cease operations after being found to have “habitual criminal activity.”
“The state’s analysis of the high volume of calls for service and police reports for a single business shows that Gateway is a habitual criminal activity “This is a violation of the C.P.R.C., and additional offenses that contribute to the overall blight in the City of El Paso caused by this business,” the El Paso County Attorney’s complaint states.
Suspected Tren de Aragua gang members in Aurora, Colorado were released on $1,000 bond
As recently as August 23, police reported the presence of the international gang Tren de Aragua in the Gateway Hotel building, which the county attorney described as “the most dangerous.”
An officer’s note that day read, “Saw Venezuelans coming out of a room and cooking smoke was coming out of the room. The fire marshal had already warned them that they were not allowed to cook inside their room. They said they had permission. The man had a tattoo that resembled the Tren de Aragua gang.”
Officials also said the property could be the site of prostitution, drug use, gang activity and illegal trash, according to the complaint.
According to legal documents, suspected members of the Venezuela-based multinational gang Tren de Aragua were seen in surveillance footage partying and drinking alcohol on the streets, where they appeared to vomit on children. (KFOX14/El Paso County Attorney’s Office)
The Gateway Hotel was only granted a conditional use permit for the property, which only included the lobby and first floor, until 2018. The past six years of operations have occurred without a valid certificate of occupancy and are in direct violation of El Paso city requirements.
A one-star review of the Gateway Hotel on Yelp states, “This is an incredibly dirty, drug and insect infested, fire trap!”
The hotel, built in 1903, has failed fire inspections at least three times since July. A serious fire at the Gateway on June 16, 2024, highlights “deplorable conditions inside the building,” according to the El Paso County Attorney’s Office.
“A video showing the deplorable conditions inside the building and the type of activity permitted inside the business comes from an aggravated assault case. The video shows dozens of people ‘partying’ on the third floor of the hotel, drinking alcohol, smoking, and dancing provocatively, while children are present,” the complaint states. “The video also shows at least one gun being fired, a second gun being used to make threats, people holding knives, and another person wielding an axe attacking people and causing damage to the hotel in front of security guards.”
Tren de Aragua’s criminal activity at El Paso’s Gateway Hotel follows an alarming trend of building occupations in Colorado.
According to the El Paso County Attorney’s Office, suspected Tren de Aragua gang members engaged in illegal activities including illegal dumping and drug use. (KFOX14/El Paso County Attorney’s Office)
Tren de Aragua is an international gang based in Venezuela with approximately 5,000 members. The gang has been found to be involved in illegal drug dealing, sex trafficking, and carrying unauthorized firearms. Some of the gang members are in the United States Illegal alien,
“I am grateful to our law enforcement for overseeing this successful operation. Every day, Tren de Aragua is gaining more of a foothold in our country, and El Paso is clearly a market for this dangerous gang,” Congressman Tony Gonzales told Fox News Digital. “That’s why I have worked hard to designate the TDA as a transnational criminal organization and provide security agencies more tools to shut down their operations. El Paso has historically been one of the safest cities in our country, and I am committed to keeping it that way.”
Suspected members of the Venezuela-based multinational gang Tren de Aragua were seen carrying weapons in surveillance footage shared by the El Paso County Attorney’s Office of the Gateway Hotel. (KFOX14/El Paso County Attorney’s Office)
Congressman Chip Roy also told Fox News Digital that “the fact that DPS and local El Paso authorities had to shut down a hotel due to Venezuelan gang activity shows just how widespread the problem is.”
“I am deeply concerned for the well-being of the families, seniors, veterans and children residing at the hotel, who must vacate by 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, September 12, 2024,” El Paso County Attorney Cristina Sanchez said in a release.
Gateway Hotel owner Howard Yun did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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The Gateway Hotel declined Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
