District of Arizona Charges 226 Individuals for Immigration-Related Criminal Conduct this Week (DOJ)

PHOENIX, Ariz. - During the week of enforcement operations from March 28 through April 3, 2026, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona brought immigration-related criminal charges against 226 individuals. Specifically, the United States filed 117 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the United States, and the United States also charged 95 aliens for illegally entering the United States. In its ongoing effort to deter unlawful immigration, the United States filed 14 cases against 14 individuals responsible for smuggling illegal aliens into and within the District of Arizona.

These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE-ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Recent matters of interest include:

United States v. Porfirio Astorga-Rivera. Astorga-Rivera was charged by criminal complaint on April 1, 2026, with Bringing an Alien to the United States Unlawfully for Profit. On March 31, Border Patrol agents were alerted to the presence of a potential group of illegal aliens near Tule Road in Wellton, Arizona. The agents apprehended three individuals, including Astorga- Rivera, attempting to conceal themselves and wearing camouflage clothing and carpet shoes. Agents learned that Astorga-Rivera led the group through an opening in the border wall and that he would receive $1,000 per illegal alien he led into the country. Astorga-Rivera and the two other individuals are citizens of Mexico, unlawfully present in the United States. [Case Number: 26-MJ-1255]

United States v. Idefonso Beltran-Aispuro. Beltran-Aispuro was charged by criminal complaint on April 1, 2026, with Bringing an Alien to the United States Unlawfully for Profit. On March 30, a Border Patrol agent discovered a group of five individuals wearing camouflage clothing and carrying camouflage backpacks between the Cabeza Prieta Mountains and Copper Mountains in Wellton, Arizona. Border Patrol agents apprehended four of the individuals in brush and later located Beltran-Aispuro hiding in a tree. Agents learned that Beltran-Aispuro guided the group of four into the United States and that he was promised $1,000 per individual he led into the country. [Case Number 26-MJ-1248]

These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

RELEASE NUMBER: 2026-057_April 3, 2026 Immigration Enforcement

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/

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