The MCSO (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office) announced on Thursday the arrest and indictment of ten key members of a human smuggling cartel that based its operations out of a rented house in Laveen, Arizona. The group’s kingpin, Javier Rito-Martinez, 35, was arrested by Sheriff’s deputies late Thursday afternoon.
During the course of a 5-month joint investigation by detectives with the MCSO and special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations, it was determined that the cartel was directing the flow of smuggling clients coming from the area of Oaxaca, Mexico. Oaxaca is located half-a-day’s drive from Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala. MCSO detectives investigating the case believe that the smuggling cell has generated millions of dollars while conducting its operations to illegally transport non-U.S. citizens into the United States.
The apprehension of the cartel’s members by Sheriff’s deputies included an execution of a search warrant of the main suspect’s home in Laveen where a dynamic entry had to be employed due to resistance. At least one weapon was found at the scene. During the investigation, Sheriff’s Deputies have also seized and shut down numerous drophouses scattered throughout the Valley that had been used by the group.
“It’s a real tragedy knowing that multiple members of this smuggling operation have been deported a number of times each,” said Arpaio. “Martinez, the ringleader of this syndicate, had been deported eight times by the U.S Government,” Arpaio continued.
“How can the federal government oversee all the different aspects of millions of people on a ‘pathway to citizenship’,” asked Arpaio, “if they can’t manage to track and deal with people coming and going now? Also how can the US government track the 300 illegal immigrants which were released yesterday if they can’t keep track of Martinez who has been deported eight different times? I hope they can figure that out while they sort out immigration reform.”
The arrests come just months after the Sheriff’s Human Smuggling Unit received another annual allocation of $1.6 million in state funds for the purpose of fighting human smuggling and other crimes associated with illegal immigration, including workplace identity theft. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is closing in on 6,000 arrests under the Human Smuggling statute, which was passed into law by the Arizona State Legislature.
Rito-Martinez had previously been involved in a gun battle in 2010, according to local police reports. It has also been learned that he has a child receiving DES benefits in Arizona.
Among the group who has been arrested are: Herolinda Isaias-Moreno (DOB 3-3- 68), Fernando Benitez-Valdez (DOB 12-13-79), deported on four separate occasions, Julio Menseses-Yanez (DOB 38-84), Marco Isaias-Moreno (DOB 8-7- 65) and Angel Avila-Najera (DOB 6-2-76) Irinero Rios-Ordaz (DOB 6-28-1981), deported on 5 separate occasions, Jesus Munoz-Ortiz (DOB 12-24-1968).