Anonymous tip leads police to alleged West Valley drop house (AZFamily.com)

Anonymous tip leads police to alleged West Valley drop house

8:03 AM Mountain Standard Time on Wednesday, October 22, 2008
3TV and azfamily.com Staff

PHOENIX -- An anonymous call led investigators to a West Valley drop house where half a dozen people were taken into custody overnight.

Tuesday night's tip came from somebody living in the neighborhood of 67th Avenue and Encanto. That person said something didn't seem right at the house.

Investigators arrived on the scene and observed what they believed to be human smuggling activity.

Once inside, they found at least six undocumented immigrants and several alleged coyotes.

All of those people were taken into custody.

"We saw some activity inside the house, kind of looking through the window that confirmed the suspicious activity, the original story we were told," said Sgt. David Montoya of the Phoenix Police Department. "We had our Special Assignments Unit come out and they assisted us with pulling the people out of the house."

Investigators said it looked like the undocumented immigrants had just been dropped off at the house.

Investigators were still on the scene early Wednesday morning, working to sort out the situation.

Those taken into custody were to be turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.