17 held after shots fired
Authorities say men may be illegal immigrants

10/8/07
kjackson@theadvertiser.com

Officials with the Immigration and Naturalization Service are investigating whether 17 Hispanic men arrested over the weekend in Duson are in the U.S. illegally, said local law enforcement officers.
The investigating comes after the men were all arrested for various drug and weapons charges by Lafayette Parish Sheriff's deputies Saturday afternoon. The men ranged in age from 20 to 48 years old.

Captain Kip Judice, a patrol commander at the Sheriff's Office, said none of the men arrested had proof of legal residence in the United States.

"None of them provided us with the proper documentation," Judice said.
Sometime around 3:51 p.m. Saturday deputies with the sheriff's office responded to a report of shots being fired in the 400 block of Marigny Circle in Duson.

Three sheriff's office units responded to the scene and arrested 39-year-old Modesto Trejo on charges of illegal use of a firearm.

Three hours later deputies received another call about more shots being fired in the area, which prompted up to seven units to respond to the area in force.

At the scene, deputies found a large gathering of individuals and upon further investigation, law enforcement officers found many of the Hispanic men to be in possession of cocaine, according to arrest records from the Lafayette Parish Correctional Center and Lt. Craig Stansbury, spokesman for the LPSO. Stansbury added that a majority of the men arrested Saturday could not speak English and others claimed not to speak the language.

"Some of these guys admitted they were here illegally," Stansbury said.

Stansbury said the Immigration and Naturalization Service has been contacted regarding the arrests.

He could not comment on whether the men will be transferred to the custody of the INS or a federal detention center.

"What will happen next is up to immigration," he said.

LPCC Director Rob Reardon said the men will more than likely be housed at his jail until the drug charges are ajudicated.


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