PHOENIX — Four defendants have been collectively sentenced to 220 months in federal prison for their roles in operating two stash houses in Phoenix for undocumented migrants, officials said.
Angelico Roa-Joachin, 43, was recently sentenced in court to six and a half years in prison after the defendant was convicted of conspiracy to harbor undocumented migrants.
Roa-Joachin was the last of four defendants to be sentenced for their involvement in the smuggling crimes.
Rafael Hernandez-Garcia, 35, was sentenced to six and a half years. Luis Alberto Calixto-Pegueros, 25, was sentenced to three years and Alexis Mejia-Zamora, 26, was sentenced to two years.
In April 2021, agents of Homeland Security Investigations found over 30 migrants living at Phoenix stash houses coordinated by the defendants.
The investigators additionally found ledgers detailing smuggling activities.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office of Arizona, the stash houses processed hundreds of migrants and one of these female migrants was sexually abused by three of the defendants.
"The individuals were often held in overcrowded conditions and were not permitted to leave until their families or sponsors paid the smuggling organization for their release," prosecutors said.
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