Sheriff Joe Raids Sporting Goods Company: Nabs 27 Illegals Using Stolen IDs (update)
By John Hill on February 8, 2013
standwitharizona.com
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He’s known as “America’s Toughest Sheriff”. But Joe Arpaio continues to show he deserves the moniker of “America’s JOBS Sheriff”. Because every time Sheriff Joe conducts a raid, he frees up jobs for legal American workers.
And at a time when raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are almost unheard of – Barack Obama has slashed workplace enforcement by a staggering 70% since 2009 – Sheriff Joe and his department keep on working to crack down on illegal aliens in the workplace.
Today was no exception, as Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies raided Sportex Apparel in Tempe, AZ, a custom-made sports clothing and accessories company – and arrested 27 illegal aliens, most of whom were caught using stolen or false identification.
In a seven-month long investigation, deputies learned that as many as 19 employees were using false or stolen IDs to work at Sportex, said Officer Christopher Hegstrom with MCSO. After Friday’s raid, 23 illegals were arrested for ID theft. Four others were taken into custody for outstanding criminal warrants, totaling 27 arrests.
This was the sheriff’s 61st such sweep. In the previous 60 employer sanctions/identity theft operations, 100% of all suspects found to be committing identity theft to gain employment were illegal aliens. Sheriff Joe’s office has investigated, arrested on the streets and in the jails over 79,000 illegal aliens.
“Illegal aliens are stealing identities of U.S. citizens to gain employment which escalates our unemployment problems. I don’t believe we should tolerate this. Furthermore, I will continue to enforce all federal and state illegal immigration laws in the business sector through human smuggling and crime suppression operations, despite activists and the federal government who may not like it,” said the Sheriff.
There is not yet indication whether some of the illegal aliens were using the social security numbers of dead persons, as has happened many times in the past, including ones of murder victims.
Arpaio said that one of the benefits of these employer sanctions/identity theft operations is that they open up job opportunities for legal citizens.
For critics who insist that illegal aliens only take the jobs that Americans refuse to do, we remind them of the example in the news report below, where legal workers of all ages and backgrounds lined up for jobs at three Phoenix-area restaurants, after a major Arpaio raid removed 200 workers there:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=Y34U07CxVm0
Way to go, Joe!
Sheriff Joe Raids Sporting Goods Company: Nabs 27 Illegals Using Stolen IDs | Stand With Arizona
MCSO: 27 arrested in raid at Sportex Apparel in Tempe
Posted: 02/08/2013
By: Erisa Nakano
abc15.com
TEMPE, AZ - Nearly 30 people have been arrested after the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office served a search warrant Friday at a Tempe company accused of hiring workers illegally.
Officer Christopher Hegstrom with MCSO said the search warrant was served around 12:30 p.m. at Sportex Apparel LLC, located near 52nd Street and University Drive.
In a seven-month long investigation, deputies learned that as many as 19 employees were using false identification to work at Sportex, said Hegstrom.
After Friday's raid, 23 workers were arrested for ID theft, and are also suspected of being in the country illegally. Four others were taken into custody for outstanding criminal warrants, totaling 27 arrests, Hegstrom said.
MCSO’s Criminal Employment Enforcement Squad was at the scene to make numerous arrests.
“ID theft is obviously a huge problem judging by what’s been in the news just this week," Sheriff Joe Arpaio said. "Illegal immigration presents its own set of problems regarding ID theft and must be resolved by Congress.”
MCSO: 27 arrested in raid at Sportex Apparel in Tempe
Dozens arrested in Arpaio raid asking for dropped, reduced charges
Video at the source link.
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by Catherine Holland
Video report by Ryan O'Donnell
Posted on April 15, 2013 at 8:59 AM
Updated today at 2:09 PM
PHOENIX -- Two dozen people arrested by Maricopa County sheriff's deputies during an early February raid on Sportex Apparel in Tempe are asking a judge to drop or reduce the charges against them.
Monday's hearing stems from a Feb. 8 MCSO immigration/identity theft raid, the 71st of its kind.
A call to MCSO last year spawned a seven-month investigation of Sportex Apparel. According to MCSO, 23 people were arrested on suspicion of being in the country illegally and ID theft. Four others were arrested on outstanding criminal warrants.
"ID theft is obviously a huge problem judging by what's been in the news just this week. Illegal immigration presents its own set of problems regarding ID theft and must be resolved by Congress," Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said at the time.
Natally Cruz, the niece of one of those arrested, said her uncle was working under his own name with a made-up Social Security number, not a stolen one.
The families and friends of those arrested immediately pleaded for leniency, asking for felony charges to be dropped.
"We're hoping that they drop the charges on all of them," Cruz said shortly before Monday's hearing. "These are people who have worked there [at Sportex Apparel] for more than 18 years, who now, due to these felony charges that they're going to have, ... will no longer qualify for immigration reform."
“Nobody is a criminal," said Laticia Ramirec with Puente Arizona. "They just wanted to raise their family. They just want to give a place to their family so they can eat. They just want to work.”
In the weeks after the raid and subsequent arrests, Montgomery said he can't grant anyone special treatment.
"For me to distinguish a particular category for defendants, different policies that people are asking me to be lenient on, we could be here all day trying to figure out the consequences of so many other felony prosecutions," Montgomery said.
"This is a critical moment in our community's mounting pressure on County Attorney Bill Montgomery, as the outcome of this hearing will determine the raid victims' ability to fight their deportation cases," Caroline Picker of Puente Arizona, a community-based group that is "part of the global movement for migrant justice and human rights," wrote in an email encouraging media outlets to attend and cover the hearing.
She said supporters of the arrestees planned to pack the courtroom to protest Sheriff Joe Arpaio's raids. After the hearing, they plan to march from the courthouse to Montgomery's office.
The group chose not to call the county attorney ahead of time, hoping that showing up unannounced would get them further into the building. That was not the case.
Cruz said they had tried to schedule a meeting in the past, but have not gotten anywhere.
“Not with me you haven't," answered Jerry Cobb, who works for Montgomery’s office. "I'm the official spokesperson with the office and I handle all the media questions and meetings like this, so if you email me, I will be happy to try and arrange a meeting for you."
After finding out the county attorney wouldn't meet with this group unannounced, each person said they plan on emailing Cobb in hopes of setting up an in-person meeting.
http://www.azfamily.com/news/immigra...203033721.html
