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Monday April 28, 2025
(COLORADO SPRINGS, CO) -- The Drug Enforcement Administration said it detained more than 200 people -- including members of the military -- at an unlicensed underground nightclub in Colorado on Sunday, officials told ABC News.
Officials said among those that were detained were active-duty military members. DEA Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen said that alleged members of gangs, including Tren de Aragua and MS-13, were present at the venue.
At approximately 3:45 a.m. on Sunday, officials conducted a "multi-agency enforcement operation" at what they called an underground nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The DEA's Rocky Mountain Division posted a video on X showing the operation underway on Sunday morning.
Of the hundreds of people inside the nightclub, at least 114 were migrants that DEA officials said were in the country illegally. They are now in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
Close to 300 people were inside the nightclub and 114 illegal migrants were taken into custody, with most from Central and South America, officials said.
"Drugs and weapons have also been seized at this underground nightclub," the DEA's Rocky Mountain Division said on X.
The operation was led by the DEA and involved around 10 federal agencies along with the local sheriff's department, officials said. The investigation took several months and included undercover operations, officials said.
Authorities said they used drones, a helicopter and an armored vehicle for the operation.
The Army confirmed that service members from Fort Carson, Colorado, were present at the club and that it is conducting a joint investigation with DEA.
The Army would not say how many service members were allegedly involved, whether any were arrested or remain in custody, or if they were charged.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement on Sunday that "cocaine, meth and pink cocaine was seized" during the operation, and that two people were arrested on existing warrants.
"As we approach his 100 days in office @POTUS Trump's directive to make America safe again is achieving results!" Bondi said.
Officials said they also found evidence of prostitution and suspect human trafficking was at play at the nightclub.
Mike Moon, the property owner, told ABC Colorado Springs affiliate KRDO he had "no idea" what was happening in the space and the tenants' lease was about to expire at the end of April.
"It's shocking to me that in this political climate that something like this was even happening and that people thought this was a good idea to do something like this," Moon said.
The space is an event center with a stage and a bar in the back, but there was no liquor license for the club, officials said.
There were no injuries to law enforcement, but one man suffered life-threatening injuries jumping out of a window trying to flee, officials told ABC News.
ABC News' Anne Flaherty contributed to this report
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