BP agents find 27 in area stash house

Border Patrol agents caught 27 illegal immigrants this week after receiving tips they were hiding in a Rio Rico stash house, a Border Patrol spokesman said.

Agents were following up on reports of suspicious activity in an undisclosed neighborhood of the small community, 10 miles north of the international border at Nogales.

At the house, agents and assisting Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s officers found 27 illegal immigrants, three of whom were arrested and charged with human smuggling.

If convicted, the smugglers could face up to five years in prison.

The remaining 24 were taken to the Border Patrol’s Nogales station for processing, a spokesman said.

Five vehicles associated with the transportation of illegal immigrants were found on the property and seized.

Border Patrol agents did not disclose how long the illegal immigrants had been at the house or where they were going and said the investigation is still ongoing.

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