On Wednesday, Maricopa County sheriff’s deputies arrested Cruz Loya Alavares, at the Palo Verde nuclear power plant, about 50 miles outside of Phoenix. Security guards at the facility alerted law enforcement after Alvares presented them with an expired Mexican driver’s license.
On Thursday, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said in a statement: “We have arrested an illegal alien who has penetrated and gone into the Palo Verde nuclear plant.”
Sheriff Arpaio continued: "To some extent security at this nuclear power plant worked. But still, an illegal immigrant was permitted to gain access to this facility. This raises the question: how safe is Palo Verde really if an illegal alien can gain access to this nation's largest nuclear power facility?
Cruz told deputies that he has been living and working in the U.S. for most of the last 15 years.
In 2000, he was deported but simply hired a coyote (human smuggler) to help him re-enter the country.
Just last month, the Mexican national was stopped by police in Mesa and ticketed for driving without a license.
KTAR.com has reported that security personnel have admitted to Sheriff Arpaio that drivers of contractor's vehicles are allowed to simply “vouch” for their if they lack proper identification upon entering the plant.
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