Thread: Raid of Phoenix business by sheriff leads to 5 arrests

Raid of Phoenix business by sheriff leads to 5 arrests

by Krystal Klei - Jul. 27, 2010 09:05 AM
The Arizona Republic

Maricopa County Sheriff's detectives arrested five people on Tuesday in a theft identity raid at a south Phoenix business.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said the investigators received a tip about three months ago that at least one person working at Valley View Building Services Inc. was believed to be in the United States illegally. That employee had been working on the Fort Huachuca military base in Sierra Vista.

After further investigation, investigators suspected more than 20 people could have been working illegally at Valley View Building Services, which is near 19th Street and University Drive.

A warrant was served to the business Tuesday morning, and five women were arrested. Four of the women were arrested on suspicion of identity theft, and the fifth women, who is believed to be a U.S. citizen, was arrested on a warrant in connection with failing to appear on a traffic citation.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio said detectives are continuing to investigate the company, in efforts of locating up to 20 more people suspected of using false identification, who may be on other worksites. Owner of the business, Joel Votaw, said he didn't know some of his workers were using under false identification.

Votaw said he used a program called eVerify to confirm his employees could be legally employed, and said he supports finding people who have stolen the identity of another.

"It absolutely needs to be taken care of," Votaw said to Arpaio, as they discussed the search. Kenneth Johnson, owner of the property and building, said he has asked his tenants to confirm the legal status of their employees. Although he said he believes they have tried hard to do so, he said "it's a major problem, and it's not going to go away."

http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoe ... -raid.html

one person working at Valley View Building Services Inc. was believed to be in the United States illegally. That employee had been working on the Fort Huachuca military base in Sierra Vista.