10 'coyotes,' 30 immigrants seized at Glendale drop house (Arizona Republic)

10 'coyotes,' 30 immigrants seized at Glendale drop house

by Meghan Moravcik Walbert - Apr. 6, 2009 12:25 PM
The Arizona Republic

Authorities took custody of 10 suspected human smugglers and nearly 30 undocumented immigrants after a tip led them to a drop house in Glendale where the immigrants were being held against their will.

The "coyotes" are suspected of attempting to extort money out of the families of the undocumented immigrants, threatening to electrocute or assault them.

A family member of one of the victims tipped off police, who discovered the drop house near 43rd Avenue and Bethany Home Road on Sunday night.

Some of the victims had minor injuries, but no one needed to be admitted to a hospital, said James Warriner, a DPS spokesman.

The unit that busted the drop house is made up of officers from the Arizona Department of Public Safety, Phoenix police and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The unit targets violent drop houses.

"We treat this just like any other major organized crime," Warriner said. "All our focus is on the violence that's going on inside those houses."

Warriner said that typically, the undocumented immigrants already have paid $1,500 to $2,000 to be transported across the border.

"Once they get here, (the coyotes) start extorting them by threatening to use violence . . . to get more money out of the families before they'll send them on to the next destination," Warriner said.

The undocumented immigrants were placed in the custody of ICE.