Two men were taken into custody on charges of abducting four migrants and holding them in a home in southern Phoenix.
Jose Domingo Ortega-Lopez, 24, and Maynor Eulises Gonzalez Perez, 30, were both charged with kidnapping on three counts for the purpose of mistaking their victims for involuntary serfdom.
At around 3:36 p.m. on November 14, Phoenix police responded to an urgent call for a kidnapping near the 15th.
The same home was involved in a major people smuggling operation in January that detained over 50 undocumented immigrants.
The caller informed the police that she was in a toilet and that she had been kidnapped and detained against her will in the past 15 days, according to police records.
She told officials that she was traveling through Mexico from Guatemala when she was abducted and taken to the United States against her will. Upon arrival, officers found the woman with four Hispanic men outside the home.
The caller informed the police that, according to the incident report, the front door was under constant surveillance and that at least two men had sexually abused her.
She told officers she overheard her kidnappers argue that she would be sold to someone else that Saturday for $ 8,000.
One ofmale victims who got off with the caller told officials he arrived at the house on November 13 unaware of the situation.
The female victim identified Gonzalez Perez and Ortega-Lopez as the people who had sexually abused them on various occasions days earlier.
She then informed police that Gonzalez Perez and Ortega-Lopez were the people responsible for the location where she was being held. Ortega-Lopez was not there when the officers arrived, but was later arrested, according to official documents.
A second man told police that he had been brought blindfolded from Mexico to the United States to work.
The man confirmed the woman’s story and told officers that he heard her speak of sexual assault.
He also identified Ortega-Lopez as one of the leaders and told police that he was the one in charge of keeping the ledger.
The man had crossed the Arizona-Mexico border with another man. The fourth victim said he was blindfolded and tied with his hands behind his back with shoelaces, the likely cause. He was told he could not leave the house.
The fourth victim said Gonzalez Perez was the person who picked him up at the port of entry and brought him home to south Phoenix.
Gonzalez Perez told Phoenix police that he was not involved in a kidnapping but was on his way to New York and paid 100,000 pesos ($ 4,800) to cross.
Ortega-Lopez also denied any involvement in the kidnapping, saying he was there after being taken across the border.
Both suspects are charged with triple abductions with the intent to mistake their victims for involuntary bondage.
The Phoenix Police are currently investigating, said Police Spokesman Sgt. Anna Justus.
You can reach Breaking News reporter Steven Hernandez at steven.hernandez@arizonarepublic.com or on Twitter @The_HdzCo.
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