By Corinne Murdock |
A nonprofit program receiving taxpayer funds to house illegal immigrants called police on two congressmen who attempted to visit the facility last week.
A manager with Casa Alitas called the sheriff on Republican Reps. Tom Tiffany (WI) and Doug LaMalfa (CA), both members of the Natural Resources subcommittee, when they attempted to visit a Casa Alitas location housing illegal immigrants: a repurposed Ramada Inn in Tucson. In a video of the interaction, the pair are invited to speak to an unidentified, masked woman referred to as the “manager” of the location; upon hearing them introduce themselves as members of Congress, the woman turned and yelled at her colleague to “call 911.”
Tiffany urged a public congressional hearing on NGO expenditures for illegal immigrant aid.
“These NGOs aiding illegals are receiving federal dollars, and it’s Congress’ duty to provide oversight,” said Tiffany. “This needs investigating ASAP, and Congress must hold public hearings with these groups testifying to give the American people transparency on how their tax dollars are being spent.”
Casa Alitas is a program of the Catholic Community Services of Southern Arizona. The program takes in illegal immigrants from ICE and Border Patrol detention, and gives them housing, food, clothing, laundry, toiletries, and travel assistance.
The parent organization spent over $3 million in the 2022 fiscal year to operate Casa Alitas, assisting nearly 47,700 illegal immigrants that year. As of their latest data in 2023, the program has assisted over 180,000 illegal immigrants since launching in 2014.
In December, illegal immigrants overwhelmed Phoenix Sky Harbor airport with transport and travel assistance supplied by Catholic Community Services of Southern Arizona. Multiple individuals reported witnessing the illegal immigrants receiving priority boarding and expedited security checks.
The cost to house and transport illegal immigrants has come at a high cost to taxpayers. In October, AZ Free News reported on the city of Tucson having spent $5 million in under a year to provide housing and busing to illegal immigrants through a reimbursement arrangement with the county and federal government. The city entered into an agreement last April to have Pima County reimburse them for incurred expenses providing services to illegal immigrants.
In a meeting last week, the Tucson City Council agreed to be reimbursed for up to another $6 million under this arrangement through the summer.
Current Casa Alitas program leadership include Diego Peña Lopez, agency director; Susana Selig-Gastelum, associate agency director; Daniel Diochea, operations manager; Kyle Haynes, operations manager; and Caleb Milford, operations manager.
In a statement, Pima County Board of Supervisors candidate John Backer said that the public had a right to know how their funds were being spent, especially in connection with a crisis of this magnitude.
“This a prime example of a critical lack of transparency,” said Backer. “If public dollars are being used to run this facility, it requires oversight by public servants who will be transparent and can be trusted to look out for the taxpayers interests.”
Tiffany visited the Casa Alitas location after O’Keefe Media Group (OMG) went undercover to report the location’s inner workings. One migrant informed an OMG journalist that he witnessed gang members taking advantage of the lax border policy.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
