Immigrant claims group of 60 lost in desert

by Allison Hurtado -
May. 20, 2010 06:56 PM
The Arizona Republic

Maricopa County sheriff's deputies rescued a man Thursday morning who claimed to have been wandering with a group of about 60 illegal immigrants in the desert for eight days.

The man, in his late 20s, called deputies around 10 a.m. from near Interstate 8 around Mile Post 133. He said he had wandered away from a group of immigrants to search for water or help, said Detective Aaron Douglas of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.


Deputies rescued the man and went back to the location where he was found, but after searching for over six hours, they were unable to find any signs of other people. The search was turned over to the Border Patrol for surveillance.

The man claimed he had been traveling with the group for eight days, walking in the desert from Mexico. He reported that the group consisted of men, women and children ranging from ages 5 to 10, said Douglas.

The man said he had taken a phone from one of the women to search for help because his phone only played music. Deputies did confirm that his phone could only play music and that the phone he called from had been sold in Mexico.

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