Exclusive: Last week, immigration and customs enforcement agencies issued seven detainees for the removal of illegal immigrants who allegedly committed two robberies in Tempe and Mesa, Arizona.
The suspect is part of a South American theft group that committed two robberies in a Phoenix-area city on May 23, and is allegedly arrested by the Scottsdale Police Station for a short-term rental where the group was staying.
“Under Secretary Noem’s leadership, criminally illegal aliens are held responsible for American victims,” Deputy Director Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
Seven members of South American theft group arrested for robbery in Phoenix
Scottsdale Police Station vehicle. (Scottsdale Police Station)
“ICE works with partner law enforcement agencies across the country to ensure that South American theft groups have been completely dismantled and deported, like those responsible for robberies in California, Oregon, Washington and Arizona.
The suspects are Nicholas Rojas Leon, 23, Joan Sebastian Orozco Vargas, 26, Andres David Sanchez Novoa, 38, Natalia Isabella Ortiz Daza, 26, Martha Juliana Echiveli Guzman, 28, 28, Lady Johanna Helanzuki, 25.
According to DHS, the group operates in California, but originally originally from Columbia.
Gun-holding Gnome joins Ice Agent and chases off Arizona’s illegal criminal aliens
Homeland Security Secretary Christie Noem monitors during vehicle scans during a tour of San Isidro Port in San Diego on March 16, 2025 (Alex Brandon/Pool via Reuters)
Scottsdale police were notified of the SATG organization on May 20th by California Burbank Police Department, where they allegedly committed other robberies in California, Oregon and Washington. Golden State authorities shared information, including vehicle descriptions, to help locate the suspect. Police say a French bulldog was stolen and returned in one of the California invasions.
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Police were warned the group on May 20 by the Burbank Police Department in California.
They were warned about Columbia’s SATG group allegedly committed robberies in California, Oregon and Washington, and how they would then follow the path to Arizona.
Each suspect was held at the Maricopa County Jail, which holds “major criminal charges” on $150,000 in cash-only bonds.
Tren de Aragua gang members who were arrested in New York “were about to buy some hand-held bullets,” says Noem.
Exterior view of US immigration and customs executive Headquarters in Washington, DC (Alex Wong/Getty Images) on July 6, 2018
South American theft groups are prevalent throughout California, Arizona, Colorado, and across communities across countries, especially in wealthy areas.
The group was born in Colombia, but the Chilean SATG sparked a bipartisan demand for reform of the visa waiver program.
A recent series of “dinner robberies” in Grand Canyon state have links to SATGS, reported in March 2024 by Arizona families.
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When Fox News Digital contacted the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, he said that county lawyer Rachel Mitchell made comments at a press conference earlier this week before ICE officially announced the detainees.
“It’s clearly a federal issue,” Mitchell said when asked about the possibility that the suspect could be deported. “But my understanding is that each individual has a stoppage of the ice file.”
Scottsdale Police said they had not commented on ice-related issues and had postponed it to the county attorney’s office. There are no sanctuaries listed by DHS in Arizona.
Louis Casiano of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
Cameron Arcand is a political writer for Fox News Digital at Washington DC.
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