Arizona’s chief law enforcement officer has taken several, alleged Christmas grinches out of commission.
Late last week, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced that her office “in partnership with the Arizona Retailers Association and with the help of law enforcement partners, seized thousands of cloned gift cards and other merchandise.” Mayes’ coalition also arrested eight people “as part of an alleged scheme to defraud retailers and consumers.”
Scammers are cloning gift cards, acting like the Grinch and taking your holiday gifts.
The law enforcement blitz and subsequent arrests come at a time where consumers would be more vulnerable to gift card and merchandise fraud during their frenzied holiday shopping.
In a statement to accompany her announcement, Mayes said, “The agents and investigators that make up the Organized Retail Theft Task Force in the Attorney General’s Office have demonstrated our commitment to protecting Arizonans from fraud by uncovering this complex gift card cloning scam. The successful seizure of thousands of cloned cards and the arrest of several individuals reflects my office’s unwavering dedication to stopping organized retail theft across Arizona.”
Mayes added her appreciation for the members of her coalition, saying, “I am grateful for the support the Arizona Retailer’s Association and our law enforcement partners provided to the Attorney General’s Office in this operation. Together, we will pursue and stop criminals engaged in these activities wherever they occur in our state.”
According to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, “gift card cloning happens when fraudsters take gift cards from stores, copy the magnetic strips, and return the copied gift cards to store shelves. When a consumer buys the card, the fraudster uses the copied magnetic strip to drain the funds leaving the consumer with a worthless card.”
Tips from Mayes’ office include the following:
Consumers can avoid being defrauded by double-checking to ensure that the number on the back of any gift card matches the number on the receipt. If the numbers do not match, that is a sign the card has been cloned.
Consumers should also look for signs of tampering, such as stickers placed over activation codes or damage to packaging or faint scratches on the card from being swiped through a card reader.
For extra precaution, consumers may consider purchasing gift cards stored behind the counter or near cash registers.
The Organized Retail Crime Task Force was established under the previous administration of Republican Mark Brnovich. In December 2021, Brnovich wrote an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal, warning would-be criminals of his office’s efforts to investigate and prosecute these offenses – especially in the wake of the lawlessness in Arizona’s neighboring state to the west. He wrote, “As Arizona’s attorney general, I have refused to capitulate to the lawless mob…We expect our efforts will deter such theft and hope our task force becomes a model for California and other states.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
The Tucson Border Sector continues to attract a record number of illegal immigrants.
Late last week, John Modlin, the Chief Patrol Agent of the U.S. Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector, reported that there were 18,900 apprehensions in his sector in just one week.
Week in Review… 18,900 Apprehensions 145 Federal Criminal Cases 15 Rescues 10 Human Smuggling Events 6 Narcotics Events 2 Firearms Seized
Ali Bradley, a Network Correspondent for NewsNation, highlighted that this eyepopping number was an increase over the previous week’s record of 17,500 for the sector.
AZ: 18,900 apprehended by Border Patrol alone last week—Compare this to what @USBPChiefTCA reported last week of 17,500 which was a record high—The majority entering illegally through cuts in the wall in Lukeville which is where we have been reporting from for the last two… https://t.co/swm9aNBS96pic.twitter.com/Xc3JavvYyo
Bradley also reported that most of these aliens have been “entering illegally through cuts in the wall in Lukeville.” Lukeville has become the epicenter of the border crisis in recent months, with thousands of individuals pouring through openings in the border fence, which have largely been procured by smugglers on the Mexican side.
Another journalist, Bill Melugin from Fox News, shared CBP’s revelations that “an average of 5,000 illegal immigrants are being released into the US every day, and that there were 670,000 known gotaways recorded in FY’23” in addition to “150+ countries encountered since 10/1.”
NEW: In a private briefing yesterday, CBP told lawmakers an average of 5,000 illegal immigrants are being released into the US every day, and that there were 670,000 known gotaways recorded in FY’23, FOX has learned. 150+ countries encountered since 10/1. https://t.co/3ShHh99ndi
Arizona Legislators have long been outraged at the lack of action on the border, and the reactions to this fresh round of numbers were no different. House Majority Leader Leo Biasiucci wrote, “Enough is enough with this border shit show. It’s time Arizona grants arresting powers, & the authority to carry, to all 5000 Arizona National Guard @ the border. Take over border duties with local Sheriff’s. Arrest, load them up, and deport them immediately. 10th Amendment!!!”
Enough is enough with this border shit show. It’s time Arizona grants arresting powers, & the authority to carry, to all 5000 Arizona National Guard @ the border. Take over border duties with local Sheriff’s. Arrest, load them up, and deport them immediately. 10th Amendment!!! 🇺🇸 https://t.co/6WRCVnV19D
Representative Joseph Chaplik stated, “Democrats don’t care. Where are they in AZ calling for this to stop? Doing something in a week from now doesn’t help. Damage is done.”
Democrats don’t care. Where are they in AZ calling for this to stop? Doing something in a week from now doesn’t help. Damage is done. #azleg#arizona@GovernorHobbs
The skyrocketing apprehensions have created chaos and alarm bells throughout government at all jurisdictions, in large part, due to what law enforcement isn’t encountering. Thanks to CBP agents being pulled off the lines to help process overwhelming numbers of arrests, cartels and smugglers can run ‘gotaways’ and deadly drugs – including loads of fentanyl – through other, unmanned areas. In the past fiscal year, a record number of suspected terrorists were apprehended at the border (169), leading many to question how many other dangerous people are slipping through the cracks and into the interior of the homeland.
Officials also have seized a rising amount of drugs at the open border, which according to reports, may only be 5-10% of the total numbers being smuggled into the United States. The Tucson Sector is one of the nation’s most prolific drug smuggling corridors.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Arizona’s top two legislative Republicans are standing for the Second Amendment.
Last week, Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen and House Speaker Ben Toma joined a public comment letter to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on its newly proposed rule, Definition of “Engaged in the Business as a Dealer in Firearms.”
Petersen and Toma signed on to a letter, which was led by the States of Kansas, Iowa, and Montana – and co-signed by 22 attorneys general of other states. Those States were Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
In a statement to AZ Free News, Petersen explained the importance of his signature on this letter, saying, “This is a radical and dangerous proposed rule. You shouldn’t need to be licensed as a firearms dealer to sell a gun to family and friends. In the absence of our Arizona Attorney General defending our citizens’ constitutional rights, I believe it’s imperative state lawmakers push back against this bureaucratic infringement on lawful gun ownership.”
Toma also told AZ Free News, “I am thankful and appreciative for the opportunity to sign on to the letter. Arizona Attorney General Mayes has not expressed any interest in safeguarding Arizonans’ gun rights protected by the Second Amendment. So I felt that it was my duty as the Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives to speak up for all Arizonans against the Biden Administration’s unconstitutional proposed rule.”
According to the agency, the U.S. Attorney General “signed ATF’s notice of proposed rulemaking, which proposes to amend ATF’s regulations to implement the provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), enacted on June 25, 2022.” Specifically, the proposed regulation would “incorporate the BSCA’s definition ‘predominantly earn a profit,’ creating a stand-alone definition of ‘terrorism,’ and amending the definitions of ‘principal objective of livelihood and profit’ and ‘engaged in the business’ to ensure each conforms with the BSCA’s statutory changes and can be relied on by the public.”
The Arizona legislators concurred with the arguments that the proposed rule “violates the Second Amendment, is arbitrary and capricious, and is bad public policy.” The signatories wrote in their comment letter that “this overreach is both shocking and unconstitutional. Although longstanding regulations of large commercial enterprises that sell firearms might be consistent with the Second Amendment, that is not what this proposed rule does. This proposed rule seeks to require a license of every individual who sells a firearm for anything the Bureau sees as a profit to include currency, exchange of another firearm, or a service.”
They added, “If the Bureau was serious about combatting violent crime, it would focus on enforcing the laws that are already on the books to hold violent criminals accountable for their actions. That would be the type of work that could save lives. Unfortunately, the Bureau has instead targeted innocent people who sell firearms. That is not only unlawful but wrong and the Bureau must change course.”
On March 14, President Joe Biden issued an Executive Order, directing members of his cabinet – the Attorney General, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Education, and the Secretary of Homeland Security to “submit a report to the President within 60 days…describing what actions their respective agencies have taken to implement the Act, data, and analysis regarding the use and early effects of the Act, and additional steps their respective agencies will take to maximize the benefits of the Act.” On May 14, President Biden announced “13 actions his cabinet has taken or will take to maximize the benefits of the legislation, including new steps to keep guns out of dangerous hands, ensure BSCA’s mental health funding helps those dealing with the grief and trauma resulting from gun violence, make our schools safer, and expand community violence interventions.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Arizona House Republicans are voicing extreme displeasure with President Biden’s border policies.
On Friday, Arizona House Speaker Ben Toma and 30 of his colleagues in the chamber sent a letter to President Joe Biden, demanding that the Democrat Commander in Chief “reverse your policy and put a halt to the wide-open door for so-called ‘asylum-seekers.’”
🚨FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE🚨 Arizona House Republicans Condemn President Biden’s Closure of Lukeville Port of Entry, Refusal to Defend State from Border Crisis
The reason for the letter stemmed from the decision from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to close the Lukeville Port of Entry earlier this week. The Lukeville section of the border, inside the Tucson Sector, has recently become the epicenter of the historic crisis, seeing thousands of illegal aliens pour into the United States through gaps in the fence. In their letter, the Arizona lawmakers wrote that “the closure has caused an immediate collapse of economic activity and legal movement through that critical port of entry,” adding that “Arizonans along the way to Lukeville will needlessly suffer as businesses shutter in communities such as Gila Bend, Ajo, and Why.”
Speaker Toma said, “Securing the border is supposed to be the federal government’s job. But the willful inaction by President Biden is causing irreparable harm. Arizona’s Democratic leaders, Governor Hobbs and Attorney General Mayes, also ignore calls to defend the state and hold the federal government accountable. When Republicans in the Legislature specifically funded a mission of the National Guard to provide support to law enforcement on the border, Governor Hobbs cut that mission short to instead aid the transportation and housing of illegal aliens. Arizonans can count on House Republicans to pursue meaningful policy and budgetary solutions in the upcoming legislative session to protect Arizona’s border, border communities, and the people we are elected to represent.”
The letter from the Arizona legislators included several reasons why the state of Arizona – and other neighboring states – have been negatively affected by the border crisis. It noted that “border states in particular are significantly harmed by your administration’s failed policies every day. Our law enforcement agencies at the border are overextended. Health care providers in border communities are overworked to such an extent that they are struggling to provide essential services to the residents of their community in need of care.”
As they closed the letter, the Arizona State Representatives warned that they would “hold (President Biden) accountable for your refusal to protect this nation and its people.”
Over the course of this year, Arizona Legislative Republicans have repeatedly directed their ire to national and local Democrats over the unprecedented situation at the border. Earlier this fall, soon after the horrific terrorist attack in Israel on October 7, Senate President Warren Petersen issued a statement, saying, “Our own country must remain vigilant, as our wide open border, ignored by Joe Biden and Democrats, remains one of the greatest threats to our national security.”
In May, freshman Representative Austin Smith visited the border to gain first-hand knowledge. After his trip, he posted, “Eye opening experience down here on the border. Joe Biden and Mayorkas are derelict in their duty to our country. Absolutely shameful.”
Eye opening experience down here on the border. Joe Biden and Mayorkas are derelict in their duty to our country. Absolutely shameful.
God bless the Cochise County Sheriff’s Department. They are doing everything they can to keep Arizona and the United States safe.
A smaller coalition of state representatives, led by Gail Griffin, also sent a letter to Governor Hobbs in May, calling on Arizona’s chief executive “to take immediate action and activate all state resources to keep our communities safe from these dangerous and unprecedented threats.” The group of five legislators pointed to a February 22 legal opening from then-Attorney General Mark Brnovich, which documented “the federal government’s failure to uphold its duty to defend the States from invasion – particularly at Arizona’s border with Mexico – by drug cartels and gangs’ violence, lawlessness, and trafficking of deadly illicit drugs, such as fentanyl.”
— Arizona House Republicans (@AZHouseGOP) May 12, 2023
Back in February, Representative Tim Dunn reacted to the president’s State of the Union address, stating that it failed “to address the emergency effecting the southern border. This can end by changing his policy. This allows fentanyl to come to your neighborhood. Secure the border protect our airways from China and open up oil exploration to curb inflation.”
Biden State of the Union speech fails to address the emergency effecting the southern border. This can end by Changing his policy. This allows fentanyl to come to your neighborhood. Secure the border protect our airways from China and open up oil exploration to curb inflation. pic.twitter.com/9U29v3pchc
Though the border crisis appears to be worsening by the day, legislative Republicans have effectively made the point that the reality for Arizonans could be more daunting if not for their check on the Democrats in the state – especially Governor Katie Hobbs. When Hobbs signed the state budget compromise in May, Senate President Petersen highlighted that his members “prevented the Governor and Democrat Legislators from advancing their extremist agenda…we’re not getting rid of state funded border security resources to keep our communities safe.” In the upcoming session, starting next month, expect Republicans to continue to introduce bills and policies that would give the Grand Canyon State more ability and resources to combat the many scourges of the border crisis.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Senate Republicans Reduce Spending, Provide Historic Tax Rebates to Families, Protect School Choice and Stop Democrats' Extremist Agenda with 2023-2024 Budget pic.twitter.com/1nJvW6hehc
Last week, Commissioner Kevin Thompson announced that he and Chairman Jim O’Connor had “successfully offered amendments in the APS Transportation Electrification Implementation Plan and Budget (TEIP) agenda item.” The actions from the two commissioners took place in the panel’s meeting on December 5.
According to Thompson’s press release, he “authored an amendment that rejected the utility’s request to use up to $5M in ratepayer funds to develop and install EV charging infrastructure as part of the utility’s proposed ‘Take Charge AZ’ program.” O’Connor’s amendment ensured “that any EV rebates offered by the utility must be provided at shareholder expense, and not at the expense of ratepayers or ratepayer subsidization.”
“We can’t continue to financially burden the majority of ratepayers who don’t own an EV or who utilize charging stations,” said Commissioner Thompson. “Infrastructure for EV charging is an opportunity for the market and private enterprise to innovate and thrive, not utilities at the expense of their ratepayers.”
O’Connor added, “Our decision on Trico’s EV program in September of this year set the model we would like to see for all future EV charging; namely, no cost shift to ratepayers.”
The communication from Thompson’s Office shared that Commissioner Nick Myers also “provided an amendment that discontinued the Take Charge AZ program moving forward, allowing APS to complete the installation of charging stations currently underway.”
In his first year on the job, Thompson has taken several actions to improve efficiencies at the commission and to stand up for ratepayers. This summer, Thompson fulfilled a priority of his when he helped to secure increased funding for Corporation Commission staff without adding any more dollars to the state’s general fund. He said, “One of the significant consequences of being understaffed and under-resourced is that Arizona has consistently ranked in the bottom tier nationally in processing utility rate cases—it takes fifty percent longer to process a rate case in Arizona – resulting in delays to build new generation and replace critical infrastructure, driving up ratepayer costs and further destabilizing our regulatory and investment climate.”
Thompson also announced that he had “amended several provisions in a recent proposal for UniSource Energy’s (“UNS”) Demand Side Management (“DSM”) Energy Efficiency (“EE”) program.” The release explained that these amendments “eliminated or revised several proposals” and “reigned in ratepayer-funded incentives to contractors and sales consultants and focused on prioritizing programs that provided greater value to residential customers and target low-income customers.”
The Republican Commissioner also led a letter to Governor Katie Hobbs in October, asking the state’s chief executive to address the overwhelming price increases for electricity customers of the San Carlos Irrigation Project. The letter was co-signed by three of his colleagues – Lea Marquez Peterson, Myers, and O’Connor.
Commissioner Anna Tovar, the lone Democrat on the panel, did not add her name to the letter. Thompson told AZ Free News that he and his fellow Republicans “are willing to do whatever we can in our individual capacities to encourage our delegation and state government to put aside partisanship and get the federal government out of the business that private enterprise should be providing.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
