Pinal County deputies have discovered the body of a man believed to be an illegal immigrant less than 20 miles from the city of Maricopa.
According to a release issued late Friday by the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, a U.S. Bureau of Land Management ranger located the corpse last Monday south of I-8 in the area known as the Vekol Valley.
The ranger came upon the body when he was in the area helping the U.S. Border Patrol track a group of suspects carrying backpacks believed to be full of drugs.
The deceased Hispanic man was found laying face down on top of a loaded AK-47 assault rifle.
The cause of death is currently unknown.