100 West Washington, Suite 1900, Phoenix, Arizona 85003
Phone: (602) 876-1801 Fax: (602) 258-2081
Media Contact: SheriffsMediaRequests@MCSO.Maricopa.Gov

Date: March 2, 2010
HUMAN SMUGGLER ARRESTED AFTER ILLEGALLY
RETURNING TO THE UNITED STATES
Deputies Arrest 69 Illegal Aliens in 24-hour Period

(Maricopa County, AZ) In the past 24 hours, Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies have arrested 69
illegal aliens in the act of violating felony state human smuggling laws. The arrests are the result of
three separate traffic stops, one of which that led deputies to a drop house at the 1700 block of
Freemont Rd in Phoenix where 19 illegal aliens were discovered and arrested.
Sheriff Arpaio confirmed that one of the suspects arrested, Jose Luna-Zamarripa DOB 07-11-1986,
was previously arrested by Maricopa County sheriff’s deputies for human smuggling in 2008.
Zamarripa was deported after serving a sentence in state prison and has apparently returned back to
the human smuggling trade.
These arrests are a result of Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s recent promise to ensure that all 900 of his sworn
deputies receive training on the enforcement of illegal immigration laws.
Sheriff Arpaio states that the rate of arrests made by his office for human smuggling violations at
this point of the year is already almost triple what it was this time last year. This is a significant
increase considering the fact that the federal government just recently stripped the Sheriff’s authority
to allow 100 federally trained deputies to act as Immigration and Custom’s Enforcement (ICE)
agents under the 287(g) program.
“This proves that I am keeping my promise to the people of Maricopa County and that I am
continuing to press forward on the illegal immigration problem we are facing. Obviously the
numbers suggest that illegal aliens are still coming into this country and we are still arresting them,â€