Men, women pay $5,000 each for U-Haul ride to Phoenix

A group of men and women who entered the country illegally told Pinal County Sheriff’s deputies Sunday they each paid $5,000 for a ride inside a U-Haul truck from the border to Phoenix.

A person spotted the U-Haul truck at a travel center about five miles southeast of Eloy and called 911 after observing several people in the back of the truck who appeared to need medical attention, according to a sheriff’s office press release. Deputies who arrived at the scene found the men and women standing, sitting and lying near or inside the truck. They told authorities there were about 14 to 20 people who had been in the truck.

Eight were found at the scene and witnesses told deputies they saw five or six others walking east into the desert. U.S. Border Patrol officials assisted in locating the individuals who walked into the desert. They were later found and taken to the Casa Grande Border Patrol station to be interviewed.