TUCSON – Multiple law enforcement agencies participating in an Alliance to Combat Transnational Threats operation recently arrested nearly 200 individuals, including criminals and previously deported illegal aliens, and seized more than $2 million in marijuana.
During a seven-day joint operation, led by the Department of Public Safety, troopers and agents joined forces earlier this month to target illegal activity in Arizona’s vast desert southwest of Tucson. The operation included members of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and other ACTT partners.
Transnational criminal organizations, referred to as TCOs, routinely engage in human and narcotic smuggling in Arizona’s remote desert to avoid detection while in route to U.S. Interstates and Highways. Their activity threatens the safety of visitors to public lands and destroys natural and historic resources. Smugglers and illegal aliens also discard large amounts of trash, causing further damage.
During the operation, ACTT partners, led by the Department of Public Safety’s Border Strike Force, conducted foot and vehicle patrols; arrested criminal-network operatives and illegal aliens; interviewed suspects; and identified and tracked criminal elements for law enforcement action.
Operation partners continue to develop leads into both illegal alien and drug smuggling organizations operating throughout the area. Law enforcement officials thoroughly investigate and pursue all leads generated during and after the operation.
“These coordinated efforts leverage the capabilities and jurisdictional authorities of federal, state, and local law enforcement to dismantle criminal networks,” explained Frank Milstead, director of Arizona Department of Public Safety. “ACTT’s strategic approach creates an environment that denies, degrades, disrupts and dismantles the criminal elements’ ability to operate in Arizona.”
