Federal authorities say they dismantled an apparent human smuggling stash house in north Phoenix, discovering 19 migrants crammed into a single apartment unit as they prepared to be moved to other states.
On March 2, agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations executed search warrants at an apartment complex near 19th and Peoria Avenues. According to investigators, the unit served as a temporary holding facility for migrants who had recently crossed the border and were awaiting transportation somewhere in the nation.
According to federal court records, officers discovered 19 persons in Unit 103 of the Ark on Desert Cove Apartments. The migrants were allegedly smuggled across the border and stayed in the flat very momentarily before being taken to other locations around the United States.
Authorities referred to the location as a “stash house,” a word investigators use to describe locations used by smuggling organizations to hide migrants after they cross the border.
“This is the largest bust I’ve personally heard of since I’ve been a lawmaker in Arizona,” said Republican State Senator Jake Hoffman.
Hoffman stated that the conditions within the unit sparked humanitarian concerns.
“This is a national security problem. It’s a law and order crisis as well as a humanitarian crisis,” Hoffman explained. “You’re seeing, in this case, 19 people crowded into a single bedroom flat. “That is completely inhumane.”
Investigators claim to have identified the purported stash house operator. Court filings claim that agents discovered a man named Iven Jonathan Monjarez nearby.
During an interview with detectives, Monjarez allegedly stated that he was paid $100 per person for allowing migrants to stay at the flat. Over the past six months, he calculated that approximately 150 people had remained inside.
Federal investigators also arrested two alleged “load drivers,” Gabriel Garcia Lopez and Alvaro Ojeda Lopez, who authorities claim were paid thousands of dollars to transport migrants to states on the East Coast.
One of the migrants discovered inside the apartment, identified in court filings as Pedro Gomez-Perez, told detectives he was “shocked” by the number of individuals inside when he arrived.
“This is not just an Arizona problem; it is a national problem,” Hoffman told reporters. “Until the scourge of human trafficking comes to an end once and for all, we’re going to continue to work on this issue.”
Monjarez and the two drivers are each facing federal felony accusations for transporting unauthorized immigrants. The migrants discovered inside the residence are anticipated to face immigration offenses and deportation proceedings.
Attempts to contact management at the Ark on Desert Cove Apartments for comment were unsuccessful.
Hoffman believes that this case is one of several similar cases being pursued by federal authorities.
“I applaud the members of law enforcement, both locally and federally, that participated in this effort,” he told reporters. “I’m grateful they took this gang down.”
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