YUMA, Ariz. – Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents arrested two men during separate encounters Tuesday and discovered one to be a U.S. citizen wanted in Phoenix for burglary; the other identified as a registered sex offender from Mexico.
The first encounter occurred early Tuesday when agents assigned to the Integrated Targeting Team (ITT) in Blythe, California, participated in a vehicle stop. After agents identified the driver as a U.S. citizen wanted in Phoenix for burglary, they searched his vehicle and found multiple items: an unloaded Smith and Wesson revolver, checkbooks, credit cards, watches, high-end shoes, and passports belonging to people unknown to the suspect. Agents contacted the Phoenix Police Department who later took custody of the man and the stolen items.
Later in the day, agents assigned to Yuma Station were working near Andrade, California, when they noticed footprints heading north from the international border. Agents followed the tracks until they found Juan Lazaro-Ojeda, 38, attempting to hide from the agents. Agents arrested Lazaro for entering the U.S. illegally later identified him as an aggravated felon and registered sex offender. He was convicted for “engaging in electronic communication relating to or describing sexual conduct with a child.”