A Phoenix couple set to stand trial in Maricopa County later this year in various felony cases is now in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service in Tucson after going to Cochise County to allegedly engage in human smuggling.
And the circumstances leading to their arrest by federal agents is a bit unusual.
Katherine Marie Jurewicz and Anthony Edward Phillips, both 40, were arrested by federal agents in Bisbee on Jan. 25 after parking behind the building which houses the Cochise County Attorney’s Office. Inside the car were three undocumented non-U.S. citizens (UNCs) who crossed into the country near Douglas.
The criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court alleges Jurewicz was driving a white passenger car on State Route 80 heading out of Douglas toward Bisbee at the same time a U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) agent and a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent were driving their unmarked vehicles in the same direction.
The agents were enroute to a scheduled meeting in Bisbee, according to the complaint.
Jurewicz “appeared to have noticed the agents’ unmarked vehicles and abruptly pulled off the main road and onto the shoulder, allowing the agents to pass her,” the complaint states. As the agents drove by, they noticed a passenger as well as a blanket over the window which obstructed view into the car.
The white car merged back onto the roadway, and the three vehicles continued to Bisbee where Jurewicz eventually parked outside the building used by Cochise County Attorney Brian McIntyre and his staff. Which happened to be the same building the federal agents were headed to.
“Jurewicz and Phillips immediately exited the vehicle and began to walk away,” the complaint states. The agents observed “what appeared to be an individual or individuals in the rear seat” of the car attempting to conceal themselves from view.
One agent asked the couple to return to the vehicle for a consensual search. When Jurewicz opened the car door “three individuals were located hiding in the back seat,” according to the complaint.
All three were illegally present in the U.S., including one who said her uncle made arrangement in Mexico to have her smuggled into Arizona. After crossing the border near Douglas, she said the group’s guide said to wait for a white, four-door vehicle.
That border crosser has been detained and designated as a material witness. She is scheduled for a Feb. 25 video deposition, which involves answering questions under oath. The recording can be used at trial if she is unavailable to testify in person.
Jurewicz and Phillips are charged with transportation of illegal aliens for profit and conspiracy to transport. In post-Miranda statements, they told agents someone was directing them via WhatsApp. The pair is slated for formal detention hearings Tuesday and will remain in the custody of federal marshals until further order of the court.
Which might make things difficult for Maricopa County court officials, as Jurewicz is awaiting trial on charges filed last year for felony possession of a dangerous drug. At the time of that arrest, she was on probation for a conviction in a 2016 identity theft case.
A judge granted Jurewicz’s release from custody pending trial despite a petition filed by her probation officer for allegedly committing a new felony while on probation. Her next hearing in those cases is Feb. 8.
Meanwhile, Phillips is awaiting two trials in Maricopa County. The felony offenses charged in those cases were allegedly committed in 2020 and 2021 while Phillips was on probation for a 2015 felony conviction. Phillips’ next hearing in those cases is currently set for Feb. 22.
