This just in...
TUCSON, Ariz. – Juan "El Ganzo" Murrieta-Alcantar, a male Mexican national, was arrested earlier this month as part of a coordinated enforcement action by Joint Task Force – West, Arizona Corridor agents and state and local law enforcement partners.
Murrieta-Alcantar, a previously deported illegal alien, was targeted for arrest on Sept. 8, 2017. He is a known member of a Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) engaged in human smuggling along the U.S./ Mexico border with Arizona.
U.S. Border Patrol agents, working in conjunction with Joint Task Force-West, Arizona Corridor, received information from task force partners concerning Murrieta's possible whereabouts in the state. Agents had positioned themselves at various lookout points near Amado -- located in rural Southern Arizona about 30 miles north of the border. Shortly after noon, agents observed a suspicious vehicle depart from an area known for smuggling. Agents moved in and found the vehicle abandoned in the brush with the doors open.
Border Patrol agents tracked then located the group, where Murrieta-Alcantar and four other illegal aliens were arrested. During subsequent interviews, subjects within the group implicated Murrieta-Alcantar as the driver of the vehicle.
"Through the Department of Homeland Security's Unity of Effort, the Joint Task Force-West counter-network strategy leverages the strengths of DHS components and their state, local, and international law enforcement partners to disrupt and dismantle transnational criminal organizations," said Commander Rodolfo Karisch. "DHS will continue to apply constant law-enforcement pressure on transnational criminal organizations to deny their ability to operate."
Murrieta-Alcantar's arrest is part of an ongoing, joint investigation against a priority TCO operating in Arizona. He is currently in federal custody charged with 8 USC1324 Alien Smuggling.
Joint Task Force-West, Arizona Corridor is part of Joint Task Force-West, one of three Department of Homeland Security task forces enforcing immigration laws and targeting individuals identified as facilitators and operators of criminal cross-border activities. The task force includes U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations; U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Air and Marine Operations, the U.S. Border Patrol, and Office of Field Operations; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; the U.S. Coast Guard; as well as state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies.
TUCSON, Ariz. – Juan "El Ganzo" Murrieta-Alcantar, a male Mexican national, was arrested earlier this month as part of a coordinated enforcement action by Joint Task Force – West, Arizona Corridor agents and state and local law enforcement partners.
Murrieta-Alcantar, a previously deported illegal alien, was targeted for arrest on Sept. 8, 2017. He is a known member of a Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) engaged in human smuggling along the U.S./ Mexico border with Arizona.
U.S. Border Patrol agents, working in conjunction with Joint Task Force-West, Arizona Corridor, received information from task force partners concerning Murrieta's possible whereabouts in the state. Agents had positioned themselves at various lookout points near Amado -- located in rural Southern Arizona about 30 miles north of the border. Shortly after noon, agents observed a suspicious vehicle depart from an area known for smuggling. Agents moved in and found the vehicle abandoned in the brush with the doors open.
Border Patrol agents tracked then located the group, where Murrieta-Alcantar and four other illegal aliens were arrested. During subsequent interviews, subjects within the group implicated Murrieta-Alcantar as the driver of the vehicle.
"Through the Department of Homeland Security's Unity of Effort, the Joint Task Force-West counter-network strategy leverages the strengths of DHS components and their state, local, and international law enforcement partners to disrupt and dismantle transnational criminal organizations," said Commander Rodolfo Karisch. "DHS will continue to apply constant law-enforcement pressure on transnational criminal organizations to deny their ability to operate."
Murrieta-Alcantar's arrest is part of an ongoing, joint investigation against a priority TCO operating in Arizona. He is currently in federal custody charged with 8 USC1324 Alien Smuggling.
Joint Task Force-West, Arizona Corridor is part of Joint Task Force-West, one of three Department of Homeland Security task forces enforcing immigration laws and targeting individuals identified as facilitators and operators of criminal cross-border activities. The task force includes U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations; U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Air and Marine Operations, the U.S. Border Patrol, and Office of Field Operations; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; the U.S. Coast Guard; as well as state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies.
