Arpaio staffers tied to drug ring get bail cut

The Associated Press | Posted: Wednesday, October 12, 2011 8:01 pm

PHOENIX — Two of three Maricopa County sheriff’s employees implicated in a heroin smuggling ring have been released from custody after posting bail.

The Arizona Republic says the highest-ranking member of the trio had his bail reduced to $25,000 this week after a judge determined the original $1 million cash bail was excessive.

Evidence that investigators presented to the grand jury after the months-long probe indicate that former Deputy Alfredo Navarrette and former sheriff’s detention officer Marcella Hernandez discussed moving to a ranch in Mexico before their arrests.

Investigators say the ranch is owned by the smuggling ring’s alleged leader, Francisco Arce-Torres. He’s accused of having ties to the Sinaloan cartel and whom detectives believe fathered a child Hernandez gave birth to shortly after her arrest.

http://azstarnet.com/news/state-and-reg ... z1adMBHrdN