Sheriff's deputies raid Mesa landscaping business

Maricopa County Sheriff's Office deputies raided a Mesa landscaping company early Wednesday, arresting 29 people suspected of being in the country illegally.

Of the arrested, 20 were suspected of identity theft for using false social security numbers and other documents, and the other nine were detained for possible immigration violations said Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

The raid at the offices of Artistic Land Management, on Main Street just west of Dobson Road, began about 4:30 a.m., according to one worker who was handcuffed but later released after producing documentation that he was in the country legally. Deputies also searched a corporate office in southeast Mesa.

“What Sheriff Joe is doing is an abuse of power,” Luis Juarez, the employee who was detained, said through a translator.

Jose Hernandez, 35, of Chandler, listed in Corporation Commission records as the company's owner, could not be reached for comment Wednesday afternoon.

Juarez said workers were handcuffed with plastic zip-ties while deputies checked for documents. Those who could provide proof they were in the country legally were released, while others were put on buses and taken away, he said.

Rolando Garza, a driver and laborer for the company, said he was detained when he showed up for work at 5 a.m.

“They zip-tied everyone, even me,” Garza said. “And I'm a citizen here.” He said he was released at 7 a.m.

Sheriff's officials said the search warrants that allowed deputies to raid the business were based on information received from a former employee at the firm who indicated that Hernandez was employing illegal immigrants.

In June, MCSO arrested nine suspected illegal immigrants at water parks in Mesa and north Phoenix and said the bust might lead to an employer sanctions case. So far it has not.

County Attorney Andrew Thomas could not provide an update on that case at a Wednesday afternoon news conference.

Cibola Mobile Home Park is next to the landscaping company. Steve Wahl, who manages the park, estimated that 30 percent of the tenants in the park work for Artistic Land Management.

“It hurts everybody. I don't like illegal immigration but there are better ways to deal with the issue,” Wahl said.

Barry Christensen, who said he has lived at Cibola for seven years, said the majority of his neighbors are Hispanic immigrants. “These are good, honest people who work hard,” Christensen said. He blamed the raid on election-year politics.

“It's just publicity,” he said.

Arpaio scoffed at the notion.

“What's politics got to do with it,” Arpaio asked. “Am I supposed to stop enforcing the law because of politics?”

Reporter Angelique Soenarie contributed to this story.

Deputies from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office raided a Mesa landscaping company early Wednesday morning, arresting nearly three dozen people suspected of being in the country illegally.