Assault weapons also seized from kidnappers

  GABRIELA RICO

  PHOENIX - Arizona is under siege by human smugglers who have become more violent
  and desperate, say state and federal officials, who have vowed to crackdown on the
  practice.

  The ICE Storm operation, which will feature 50 agents targeting human smuggling rings,
  is a result of "an incredible spike in violence," said Michael J. Garcia, assistant secretary of
  the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

  Last month in the Phoenix area, 11 illegal immigrants were found bound and gagged
  after being kidnapped by a rival smuggling organization.

  In the first of two incidents last week a shootout on Interstate 10 near Casa Grande left
  four people dead. Later in the week in Tucson a high-speed chase ended when a
  smuggler plowed into a Pima County Sheriff's Department patrol car.

  Last weekend, U.S. Border Patrol agents began monitoring traffic along Interstate 10,
  hoping to intercept smugglers transporting illegal immigrants to Phoenix.

  In the past five years, federal prosecutors in Arizona have
  seen a 30 percent increase in the number of people referred
  for human smuggling, according to the U.S. Attorney's
  Office.

  In fiscal 1999, 316 cases were referred to federal prosecutors. This past fiscal year,
  which ended Sept. 30, 455 cases were referred.

  "This office remains committed to vigorously prosecuting these violent perpetrators to
  the fullest extent of the law," said Paul Charlton, U.S. Attorney for Arizona. "In talking
  about people who traffic in human beings, it is important to recognize them for what
  they are: killers, kidnappers and rapists."

  The Bureau of Immigration also notes an alarming number of assault weapons, including
  AK-47s, SKS military assault rifles and a 50-caliber Desert Eagle automatic handgun, have
  been seized from smugglers.

  The most critical component of this new campaign, Garcia said, is the inclusion of financial
  crimes experts who will trace where the smuggling organizations money is going.

  In the first half of this year, $160 million was funneled into Phoenix through money
  transmitting businesses, which he said investigators believe was mostly to pay smuggling
  fees.

  "And as last week's deadly shootout in Arizona showed, the value of a dollar is much
  more important to them than the value of human life," Garcia said.

  Border Patrol also is monitoring activity at Phoenix's Sky Harbor and Las Vegas' McCarran
  international airports.

  Congressman Jeff Flake, a Republican who represents the far eastern Phoenix
  metropolitan area, called the enforcement campaign only a "small part of what we need
  to do."

  Some politicians say a comprehensive guest worker program could take immigrants out of
  the hands of smugglers.

  Flake, along with Arizona Congressman Jim Kolbe, R-Tucson, and Arizona Sen. John
  McCain, are sponsoring legislation to create a temporary worker program, the Border
  Security and Immigration Improvement Act.

  The United States needs to provide a "legal framework for people coming here just to
  work and then go home," Flake said.

  5 MOST-WANTED COYOTES:

  Federal officials are seeking the public's help in locating five of the most-wanted
  human-smuggling fugitives.

       Luis Montiel Cercas, 25. He is 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds. He has
       black hair and brown eyes. His last known whereabouts are Ciudad Acuna,
       Mexico.

       Daniel Cercas Manilla, 30. He is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 135 pounds. He
       has black hair and brown eyes. His last known whereabouts are Ciudad Acuna,
       Mexico.

       Evodio Manilla Cabrera, aka Eudio, 30. He is 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 130
       pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes. His last known whereabouts are
       Ciudad Acuna, Mexico.

       Cristobal Fuentes Villareal, 33. He is 6 feet tall and weighs 210 pounds. He has
       black hair and brown eyes.

       Javier Avila Valdez, aka El Negro, 24. He is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 140
       pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes. He has a tattoo on his back that reads
       "EISA."

  A toll-free telephone number has been set up by the federal Bureau of Immigration and
  Customs Enforcement: (866) 347-2423. All information will be kept confidential.