The Cochise County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a human smuggling attempt that resulted in injuries to multiple undocumented immigrants.
The Office is trying to confirm that a fifteen 15-year-old male was the driver of the smuggling vehicle.
According to the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office, on Tuesday August 29, at approximately 8:50 a.m., it was advised that an SUV that had picked up several undocumented immigrants at the intersection of Highway 80 and Central Highway in Douglas. The vehicle was reported travelling northbound on Central Highway shortly after picking up the suspected migrants.
A short time later, officers with the Douglas Police Department located an SUV travelling northbound on Central Highway and as they attempted to conduct a traffic stop on the vehicle which ultimately began to flee. The vehicle was pursued for a short distance before the officers disengaged.
U.S. Border Patrol agents were in the area and attempted to stop the vehicle as it proceeded to turn east onto Double Adobe Road from Central Highway. Tire deflation devises were set near milepost 9 on Double Adobe Road, and as the vehicle approached the area the driver made an evasive maneuver in an attempt to avoid the devices.
The maneuver caused the driver to run off of the road to the southside and strike a barbed wire fence prior to rolling end over end multiple times before coming to rest with the vehicle right side up.
Officers on the scene discovered that there were eight occupants outside of the vehicle, all who were suffering injuries. One person was located approximately 20 yards to the southeast of the vehicle. All eight people were identified as undocumented immigrants.
Two migrants were transported from the scene by helicopter to a Tucson hospital, four were transported to the Copper Queen Hospital in Bisbee, and two were transported to the Copper Queen Hospital in Douglas. Later, two of the migrants from Copper Queen in Bisbee were also transported to Tucson due to the severity of their injuries.