A chase in Cochise County last month ended with eight arrests.
Two Tucson residents and six Mexican nationals were taken into custody on Tuesday, June 5. According to a press release from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, deputies from the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office and Border Patrol agents arrested the group following a vehicle pursuit. The chase ended near Hereford after the suspects abandoned an SUV and tried to escape on foot.
Agents identified a 39-year-old woman and a 28-year-old man as Tucson residents, both of whom are facing felony criminal prosecutions for alien smuggling. The six adult Mexican nationals were in the country illegally and were processed for violating immigration.
The chase started after agents with the Brian A. Terry Station observed several men get into a GMC Jimmy near the border and drive off westbound on State Route 92. Deputies who were monitoring radio traffic saw the SUV and tried to stop it to no avail as the vehicle’s driver sped up.
An agent located the GMC abandoned in a cul-de-sac, and the eight people were discovered hiding in the brush not far away. Agents also found a 9 mm handgun in the vicinity after seeing an empty holster in the vehicle.
Please visit the official website of U.S. Customs for more information HERE.