TUCSON – On Thursday, a Pinal County Sheriff’s helicopter crew assisting border operations through Operation Stonegarden apprehend a group of 18 Mexican and Central American nationals illegally present in the country northwest of Marana.
The Pinal County crew was alerted to the group’s presence after migrants activated a remote surveillance sensor along a desert trail.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, following a brief aerial search, agents spotted the group, consisting of six nationals from Guatemala, six from Honduras, three from El Salvador, and three from Mexico.
A Border Patrol agent trained as an emergency medical technician found a man in the group medically distressed. The EMT determined the man needed a higher level of care and arranged for the Pinal Air 1 helicopter to transport him to an awaiting ambulance that took him to a local hospital.
The remainder of the group was transported to the Casa Grande Station and processed for immigration violations.