Colony Ridge CEO John Harris claimed that there is “not a crime problem” in the development just days before authorities captured a member of MS-13 and a suspected member of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel in the development.
Harris made the claim in a video produced by the development’s public relations firm, Rascon Media Group. Harris told Rascon that “there’s just not a crime problem out here, there really isn’t” despite a long and documented history of illegal alien crime occurring in the sprawling development just north of Houston. Another clip claimed that allegations of cartel activity in Colony Ridge were “laughable.”
Those claims were thrown into question just days later when three previously deported illegal aliens were arrested, leading to the seizure of 344 pounds of methamphetamine inside a trailer on a Colony Ridge property. The Daily Wire confirmed that at least one of the men arrested in the stop is believed to be tied to the Cartel Jalisco New Generation, A Mexican criminal syndicate now designated a foreign terror organization by the Trump administration.
BREAKING: Three illegal aliens were arrested in Colony Ridge, leading to the seizure of 344 pounds of meth, about $500k worth.
They’ve all been deported from the United States before. It’s no coincidence that they ended up in Colony Ridge, Texas. pic.twitter.com/2lUJaeQwDV
— Spencer Lindquist ???????? (@SpencerLndqst) February 14, 2025
The three men were first stopped by authorities with the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office before one of the illegal aliens admitted to possessing methamphetamines on his property, prompting a joint operation from the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Houston Police Department.
Colony Ridge again proved to be a hotbed for criminals after a confirmed member of MS-13, who had been deported from the United States seven different times, led authorities on a seven-hour manhunt. The search for El Salvadoran national Luis Miguel Perez came after he allegedly stabbed and killed another man.
ICE just released a new photo of the MS-13 member that led authorities on a manhunt in Colony Ridge earlier this week after he allegedly stabbed and killed a man.
Luis Miguel-Perez has been deported from the United States several times before coming back into the country. pic.twitter.com/BBhT9SONUI
— Spencer Lindquist ???????? (@SpencerLndqst) February 26, 2025
That arrest came as the Department of Homeland Security and the Texas Department of Public Safety carried out a joint operation inside Colony Ridge, which resulted in the arrest of 118 illegal aliens. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reported that authorities captured illegal aliens wanted for various crimes, including murder, child sexual abuse, drug and weapons offenses, and manslaughter.
Art Rascon is a former television news anchor who now works as a public relations specialist and offers clients assistance in crisis communications and image control. “Rascon Media Group knows image control for a difficult situation and the formula to improve a shattered reputation,” his firm’s website reads.
The drug bust was the latest in a long series of illegal alien crimes in the 60-square mile development, which has systematically attracted illegal aliens and stands accused by the Department of Justice of engaging in predatory lending. One illegal alien recently admitted to murdering a woman in Colony Ridge after luring her away from her workplace under false pretenses. He also worked alongside two individuals whose immigration status is not known.
That crime occurred just after federal authorities caught a Guatemalan human smuggler living in Colony Ridge. The man, Jorge Agapito Ventura, is said to be responsible for a “mass casualty event” that occurred when a tractor trailer full of people he was smuggling overturned, killing more than 50 people. Ventura owned multiple properties in Colony Ridge and purchased his first piece of land in the development in 2019.
There were also two illegal aliens, both Mexican nationals, wanted by the International Police for murder, who were also caught in the area last year. The two individuals both lived in Colony Ridge, with one already having been reported from the United States twice. Those arrests came right after a teen was allegedly abducted at gunpoint inside the development and was shot at as he fled his captors.
A representative of Colony Ridge did not respond to a request for comment.