Thread: 61 illegal immigrants detained in South L.A., officials say

61 illegal immigrants detained in South L.A., officials say
Immigration agents find 'a scene of squalor' while investigating a smuggling ring.
By Anna Gorman
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
1:49 PM PDT, May 14, 2008

More than 60 illegal immigrants, including three toddlers, were discovered at a house in South Los Angeles early this morning by federal immigration agents serving a search warrant as part of an investigation into a human smuggling ring, authorities said.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents entered the single-family, two-story home in the 10000 block of South Normandie Avenue about 6:30 a.m.. and found 61 Central and South American immigrants crowded into the house, with trash and rotting food piled 2 to 3 feet high in each room, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said. The immigrants told agents that they had been staying in the home since Friday.

"It was essentially a scene of squalor," Kice said.

The immigrants were transported to downtown Los Angeles for processing and interviews. It wasn't clear whether any of those discovered were complicit in the smuggling operation.

The immigrants were from El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Ecuador. There were six minors -- three teenagers and three toddlers -- among the group. Immigration and Customs was working with the consulates of those countries in an attempt to keep the young children with their mothers, Kice said.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me ... 2214.story

Feds bust LA drop house holding 61 undocumented immigrants
The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES

Sixty-one undocumented immigrants were found Wednesday in a squalid drop house filled with piles of trash and rotting food, immigration officials said.

Three of those taken into custody were toddlers.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigators raided the two-story South Los Angeles home at 6:30 a.m. to serve a search warrant in a human smuggling investigation, said ICE spokeswomen Virginia Kice.

The immigrants arrived at the South Normandie Avenue house on Friday, and appeared to be from El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Ecuador, said Kice.

The group included three teenagers, one 2-year-old and two 1-year-olds. Kice said ICE officials would try to keep the toddlers with their mothers or guardians as they are processed and interviewed.

ICE spokeswoman Lori Haley said an agent involved in the raid described the conditions inside the home as "utter squalor with trash and food piled up two to three feet high inside."

Drop houses are common in human-smuggling cases and are used to hold people until they can be transported to their ultimate destination, she said.

Published: Wednesday, May 14, 2008 15:34 PDT

http://www.pe.com/ap_news/California/CA ... 305C.shtml

Federal agents launch crackdown on illegal immigrants in L.A.
2008-05-15 05:19:02

LOS ANGELES, May 14 (Xinhua) -- U.S. federal agents arrested more than 60 illegal immigrants on Wednesday in a crackdown, authorities said.

The arrested suspects, which include three toddlers, were discovered at a house in South Los Angeles early Wednesday morning by federal immigration agents serving a search warrant as part of an investigation into a human smuggling ring, authorities said.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents entered the single-family, two-story home in a downtown area and found 61 Central and South American immigrants crowded into the house, with trash and rotting food piled 2 to 3 feet high in each room, agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice said.

The immigrants told agents that they had been staying in the home since Friday.

"It was essentially a scene of squalor," Kice said.

The immigrants were transported to downtown Los Angeles for processing and interviews. It wasn't clear whether any of those discovered were complicit in the smuggling operation.

The immigrants were from El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Ecuador.

Editor: Mu Xuequan

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008- ... 173297.htm

61 illegal immigrants are a village.

What always amazes me about these stories is that they don't bother trying to bag up the garbage or even keep the toilets operational.
(Mod Edit).
Yup - good family values.

Mexicans arrested at filthy 'drop house' charged

Posted: Today at 2:17 a.m.
Updated: 45 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES — Three Mexican men held dozens of illegal immigrants in a squalid "drop house" in South Los Angeles, where one woman was raped and others say they were threatened with sexual assault, authorities said Friday.

Jose Teul, 23, Daniel Pena, 18, and Saul Mendez, 35, were charged with harboring illegal immigrants at the two-story home that immigration agents raided Wednesday, said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Virginia Kice.

The three were arrested along with 57 immigrants, including teenagers and toddlers, from Central and South America, Kice said. It wasn't immediately clear where the three was being held or if they had attorneys.

Kice said that an agent involved in the raid described conditions in the house as "utter squalor with trash and food piled up two to three feet high inside."

Inside the home agents found a pistol and a stun gun that the men allegedly used to threaten the immigrants, said Kice.

According to an affidavit ICE filed in the case, Pena repeatedly raped a woman who had been at the house since last summer. The woman, now seven months pregnant, said Pena threatened her with a gun.

Several other female immigrants said Pena and Teul tried to rape them, relenting only when the women's young children began to cry, according to the affidavit.

The harboring charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The sentence will be harsher if the defendants are found to have committed sexual assault or brandished weapons during the crime, said Kice.

Drop houses are commonly used to hold illegal immigrants until they are transported to their ultimate destination.

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://www.wral.com/news/national_world ... y/2900892/

In another article, a police spokesman said illegal aliens were held at drop houses until their forged documents were ready. So are they held as hostages until more money is paid or until the forged documents are ready? Seems like the illegal aliens are coached for several possibilities.

Kice said that an agent involved in the raid described conditions in the house as "utter squalor with trash and food piled up two to three feet high inside."

Inside the home agents found a pistol and a stun gun that the men allegedly used to threaten the immigrants, said Kice.

Family values don't stop at the Rio Grande.

May 16, 2008

Three men charged following takedown of human smuggling drop house
Smuggled aliens in home were allegedly threatened and sexually assaulted

LOS ANGELES - Three men, all Mexican nationals, made their initial appearance in federal court here this afternoon to face charges stemming from their role in operating a human smuggling "drop house" dismantled by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in South Los Angeles earlier this week.

The three men were taken into ICE custody Wednesday along with 57 illegal aliens from Central and South America after ICE agents executed a search warrant at a trash filled two-story home at 10318 South Normandie. In addition to the arrests, agents recovered a .22 caliber pistol and stun gun inside the residence that the smugglers had reportedly used to threaten the smuggled aliens. Agents also seized several ledgers and notebooks containing information related to the smuggling operation.

In a criminal complaint filed today, the three defendants are charged with harboring illegal aliens, a violation carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. There are additional sentencing enhancements if the defendants committed sexual assault or brandished weapons during the crime. Those charged in the case are Jose Teul, 23; Daniel Pena, 18; and Saul Mendez, 35.

According to the affidavit filed in the case, the defendants often brandished weapons to intimidate their smuggled aliens. Several of the women recounted how Pena and Tuel attempted to force them to have sex, relenting only when the women's young children began to cry.

One of the women found in the home was seven months pregnant and alleges that Pena is the father. According to the affidavit, Pena raped the woman repeatedly beginning shortly after she arrived at the drop house last summer. The victim stated she never told anyone about the rapes because Pe?a threatened her with a gun and she feared for the safety of her aunt, who was also being held at the drop house. Both women have been placed in a temporary shelter by a local anti-trafficking non-governmental organization.

"This case shows yet again the desperate and often brutal measures human smugglers will employ in an effort to turn a profit," said Robert Schoch, special agent in charge for the ICE office of investigations in Los Angeles. "Human smuggling is a ruthless criminal enterprise that puts the safety of our communities and even our nation's security at risk. ICE is working aggressively to disrupt this kind of activity and dismantle the criminal organizations involved."

The other aliens encountered at the drop house Wednesday remain in ICE custody while prosecutors determine which individuals will be needed as witnesses for the criminal case. The three toddlers and their mothers are being housed at a private shelter. The remaining individuals are being held at ICE contract detention facilities in the Los Angeles area.



-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

http://www.ice.gov/pi/news/newsreleases ... ngeles.htm

One of the women found in the home was seven months pregnant and alleges that Pena is the father. According to the affidavit, Pena raped the woman repeatedly beginning shortly after she arrived at the drop house last summer. The victim stated she never told anyone about the rapes because Pe?a threatened her with a gun and she feared for the safety of her aunt, who was also being held at the drop house. Both women have been placed in a temporary shelter by a local anti-trafficking non-governmental organization





If these women are truly crime victims, then it's tragic. However, knowing full well the blatant lies these people will use in order to garner sympathy, get away with their crimes, and be granted permission to stay, I have to say that I've got my doubts about this story.

Great story considering the location.

61 grains of sand found on a beach. What a revelation.