Federal agents say a Phoenix-based human smuggling operation that relied on stash houses and minivans has been knocked offline, with five people arrested this week in central Arizona. Court filings describe searches at three Phoenix-area residences that uncovered about 22 migrants reportedly held in cramped, unsanitary conditions, and a traffic stop near Cordes Lakes that revealed a minivan carrying 11 people. The five suspects now face federal conspiracy charges alleging they transported and harbored migrants in the country illegally for profit.
According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona, a federal grand jury returned indictments charging the five with conspiracy to transport and harbor illegal aliens. Prosecutors say the charge carries a potential maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
What agents found in the stash houses
Search warrants at three Phoenix residences described as stash houses turned up roughly 22 people who, according to court documents cited by local reporting, “were unable to leave or make phone calls and lacked food and slept on floors.” Investigators described the living conditions as filthy and tightly controlled, as reported by KTAR News.
Traffic stop near Cordes Lakes led to arrests
Investigators with Homeland Security Investigations’ Douglas unit and U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Border Patrol intelligence unit reported that surveillance of minivans linked to the operation led to a traffic stop near Cordes Lakes on April 28. That stop uncovered a minivan carrying 11 people and resulted in multiple arrests, according to details in the announcement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Local reporting identified the five people arrested as Ingrid Bolanos-Gomez, 41 (Guatemalan national); Alejandro Ambrocio-Espinosa, 32 (Mexican national); Rigoberto Rangel-Mora, 40 (Mexican national); Enrique Cervantes-Barrera, 48 (Mexican national); and Jesus Marin-Esquivel, 52 (Mexican national). The suspects were detained in Phoenix and have been indicted in federal court on the smuggling conspiracy charge, according to KTAR News.
Prosecution and next steps
The case will proceed through federal court in Phoenix, where the defendants, who are presumed innocent, will have an opportunity to respond to the charges at their initial appearances. Federal prosecutors and agents involved have not offered additional public comment beyond the court filings and the U.S. Attorney’s Office announcement.
