Published June 29, 2010|Associated Press

PHOENIX -- Phoenix police and the Department of Public Safety are investigating the discovery of a drop house in southwest Phoenix.

DPS spokesman Bart Graves told The Associated Press Tuesday that Phoenix police followed a suspicious looking Chevrolet pickup truck with a large piece of plywood in the truck bed.
Smugglers often use plywood to hide people in truck beds.

The driver and another occupant drove to a house in a newer Phoenix neighborhood near 83rd Avenue and Lower Buckeye Road.

Police followed and when they got to the house, officers discovered 46 men and seven women inside.
They were described as thirsty but in relatively good shape. It's unclear how long the group had been inside the U.S.

Graves said police are trying to determine if a smuggler or smugglers is mixed in with the group.