Foot guide arrested for smuggling women and children through Arizona desert

TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested a smuggler and four illegal aliens after they illegally crossed into the United States near Lukeville, Sunday, May 18, evening.

Agents assigned to the Ajo Station made the arrest after surveillance technology caught a group of suspected illegal aliens walking through a remote area near the town of Lukeville around 5 p.m. Responding agents located and arrested all five.

The group included a 49-year-old woman from Cuba, a 27-year-old woman from Uzbekistan traveling with her two young children, and a 38-year-old man from Mexico suspected of being their foot guide. During the encounter, agents learned the group had entered the country illegally through the desert earlier that day.

All five individuals were transported to the Ajo Station for processing. The Mexican man will face criminal charges for human smuggling as a foot guide in addition to charges for illegal entry into the country.

“Smuggling through remote desert areas poses significant danger, particularly for families with children,” said Chief Patrol Agent Sean McGoffin of Tucson Sector. “Our goal is to disrupt human smuggling networks operating along the Southwest border to ensure nobody is victimized by unscrupulous smugglers.”

Follow the Chief of Tucson Sector on the social media platform X at @USBPChiefTCA and U.S. Customs and Border Protection at @CBPArizona for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos.

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