53 Illegal Immigrants Held For Ransom in Phoenix Home Rescued
By Diane Smith
12:33, May 12th 2008
Authorities started the investigation into the case of 53 illegal immigrants who had been held against their will by alleged smugglers in a home in southwest Phoenix, Arizona.
Among the group of illegal immigrants there were also two 13-year-old girls, three women and a mentally disabled man, according to a spokesman of the Department of Public Safety. The rest of the members of the immigrant group were men, the spokesman added.
Investigators managed to find out that the smugglers demanded an average of $2,500 for each person's release. The immigrants had been locked down in a fortified southwest Phoenix home and their shoes were taken so they couldn’t run off.
Several firearms were found at the single-family home in southwest Phoenix. Harold Sanders, spokesman for the Department of Public Safety, said five Mexican residents were detained in the case and are facing charges of extortion, kidnapping, aggravated assault and human smuggling.
Police arrested Jesus Nunez, 18, Yolanda Martinez-Garcia, 21, Anil Solis-Romero, 23, Porfirio Felix-Reyes, 25, and Vianney Terron, 22. They were caught at a Phoenix hotel, investigators said.
The suspected smugglers were to be booked into Maricopa County jail, Sanders said, according to the Associated Press.
The 53 illegal immigrants were handed over to U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement.
"Because the undocumented aliens are held in fortified rooms and do not have access to watches, clocks, telephones, televisions, etc, so when they are interviewed, many do not have a true sense of time and whether hours, days or weeks have passed." Sanders said.
By Diane Smith
12:33, May 12th 2008
Authorities started the investigation into the case of 53 illegal immigrants who had been held against their will by alleged smugglers in a home in southwest Phoenix, Arizona.
Among the group of illegal immigrants there were also two 13-year-old girls, three women and a mentally disabled man, according to a spokesman of the Department of Public Safety. The rest of the members of the immigrant group were men, the spokesman added.
Investigators managed to find out that the smugglers demanded an average of $2,500 for each person's release. The immigrants had been locked down in a fortified southwest Phoenix home and their shoes were taken so they couldn’t run off.
Several firearms were found at the single-family home in southwest Phoenix. Harold Sanders, spokesman for the Department of Public Safety, said five Mexican residents were detained in the case and are facing charges of extortion, kidnapping, aggravated assault and human smuggling.
Police arrested Jesus Nunez, 18, Yolanda Martinez-Garcia, 21, Anil Solis-Romero, 23, Porfirio Felix-Reyes, 25, and Vianney Terron, 22. They were caught at a Phoenix hotel, investigators said.
The suspected smugglers were to be booked into Maricopa County jail, Sanders said, according to the Associated Press.
The 53 illegal immigrants were handed over to U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement.
"Because the undocumented aliens are held in fortified rooms and do not have access to watches, clocks, telephones, televisions, etc, so when they are interviewed, many do not have a true sense of time and whether hours, days or weeks have passed." Sanders said.
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