ILLEGAL ALIEN SERIOUS CRIME ESCALATING

FOUR HOMICIDES IN FOUR DAYS

Phoenix, AZ -Undocumented aliens, mostly from Mexico and Central America, now total 1953 inmates in the Maricopa County Sheriff’s jail system.

That number represents 21 percent of the overall inmate population of men and women housed in the nation’s third largest jail system.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio says that is just small part of the story about those incarcerated in his jails. He says that recent figures show that serious crime (class four felonies and above) are committed substantially by illegal aliens.

During two recent surveys, between 27 and 53 percent of all suspects booked into the jail on serious felonies had immigration holds placed on them. The vast majority of those with holds were in the United States illegally.

According to the Sheriff’s figures, illegal alien inmate population numbers have grown steadily in Arizona and other border states over the last several years. In March 2005, the illegal alien population in Arpaio’s jails totaled approximately 700.

The increase in inmate population comes as 160 federal immigration trained Sheriff’s officers have begun investigating the immigration status.