Armed Human Smuggler Arrested in Arizona near Border

Tucson Sector Border Patrol agents arrested an armed human smuggler near the Arizona border with Mexico. Agents found five Mexican migrants and a loaded handgun inside the smuggler’s vehicle.

Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent John R. Modlin tweeted images from a human smuggling incident that took place on December 16 near Sasabe, Arizona. The arrest followed an observation by Border Patrol security camera operators of human smuggling activity near the border.

Following the observation by security camera operators, agents stopped the smuggler’s vehicle and found five Mexican nationals inside. During a search of the vehicle, agents found a Springfield XD pistol under the driver’s seat.

The agents arrested the alleged human smuggler, a 25-year-old U.S. citizen and transported the migrants to the station for processing.

A few days earlier, Casa Grande Station agents made another arrest of an armed subject. Chief Modlin tweeted a photo of a Ruger pistol seized during a traffic stop. The agents identified the driver as a 25-year-old Mexican citizen, illegally present in the United States. The man now faces criminal charges related to the handgun and being in the U.S. illegally.