AURORA, Colo. — The Aurora Police Department says it will be increasing patrols around Town Center Mall this weekend in response to online rumors of a teen “takeover” event planned at the mall.
It also says it will monitor other shopping and retail locations across the city.
“If you’re coming to shop or spend time with family – welcome,” the department wrote in a social media post. “If you’re coming to cause disruption, expect to be arrested. We are operating under a zero tolerance approach.”
A spokesperson for APD said if organizers choose to relocate the "takeover" event due to media attention, the department is monitoring and will have an increased presence at other malls and high pedestrian traffic areas.
Community members, including mall employees and families in the area, told Denver7 that even though Saturday’s takeover at Aurora Town Center didn’t end up happening, it highlights a bigger issue at hand.
“It’s very alarming, very concerning because it’s about fights that they’re doing, so you know, anything can happen,” said parent Albert Jones.
Jones told Denver7 he has teens of his own and finds the ongoing trend of these ‘takeovers’ concerning.
He believes there’s more that can be done to support today’s local youth.
“During the era when I grew up, we had a lot of community programs, and there was more funding that cared about the community. Now there’s more money, but it's not being put towards the places with the things that we need for the kids in the community to get the resources that they need,” he said.
Lindsay Straight, who works inside the Aurora Town Center, agrees.
“A lot of this is because we don’t have third spaces for teens anymore that are easily available and free, you know, and because of that, a lot of them are just anxious and need to do something,” they said, “The community has to come together and try to make sure that things like this don’t happen and that we have safe places for our teens to be together and have a good time without doing crazy things.”
Late last month, police in Denver said as many as 300 juveniles took part in a “takeover” event that involved physical altercations and other disturbances at the Shops at Northfield.
Days later, the Denver Zoo made the decision to close early on a Saturday in response to a rumored takeover event at City Park. There have not been reports of significant disturbances during that event or several others that had been rumored to be in the works.
After the Shops at Northfield incident, Denver7 anchor Micah Smith talked to youth advocates about potential solutions to the trouble caused during that gathering.
Jason McBride, the founder and executive director of McBride Impact, a nonprofit focused on youth programs, said parents and kids must take accountability for their actions – but that some blame must lie with the policymakers.
"These are the people who have removed funding from youth programs, especially for the summer youth employment programs, places for these kids to be and go and have fun, express themselves in the summer."
Town Center Mall was the backdrop for Aurora Police’s campaign against youth violence two years ago, when 13-year-old Phoenix Day was shot to death in the Dillard’s parking lot on March 25, 2023.
Then-interim police chief Art Acevedo said the shooting was part of a larger problem, urging lawmakers to “get serious” about addressing youth crime in the city.
"The fact that we’re chasing these young people, we’re arresting these young people, and they go in one door and out the other, this is what happens. People get hurt and get killed," he said. [Police are] doing our jobs, but it’s time for the courts and the legislature to get serious about juvenile violence."
Denver7 has stayed on top of the numbers since. Police records we looked at in December showed youth arrests and summons were down in 2024.
Police released new photos of people of interest in Day's death two years later, but still no arrests had been made.
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