Staff at two Motel 6 locations in Latino neighborhoods in Phoenix routinely reported the names and details of guests to ICE, it has emerged.
The locations – at 4130 North Black Canyon Highway and 1530 North 52nd Drive – routinely gave a list of their residents to ICE for vetting, the Phoenix New Times reported.
‘We send a report every morning to ICE – all the names of everybody that comes in,’ a front-desk clerk, who did not wish to be named, told the paper. ‘Every morning at about 5 o’clock, we do the audit and we push a button and it sends it to ICE.’
Guests at this Motel 6 at 4130 North Canyon Highway, Phoenix – a Latino neighborhood – had their information routinely shared with ICE officers, leading to multiple arrests, it has emerged
In a statement to DailyMail.com, Motel 6 spokesperson Raiza Rehkoff confirmed that the practice had been taking place, but said it had been stopped.
‘Regarding recent media story on Phoenix-area location, this was implemented at the local level without the knowledge of senior management,’ Rehkoff said.
‘When we became aware of it last week, it was discontinued. We are currently investigating and will provide more information shortly.’
Rehkoff declined to say whether those responsible would be reprimanded, whether Motel 6 condemns the practice, and what is being done to ensure that this is not taking place anywhere else and will not happen again.
This isn’t just happening in those two locations, however, the Phoenix New Times says – it’s also occurring in ‘multiple locations’ around the city.
‘I don’t know how it works, but if you check in and you have a warrant, you’re going to get picked up,’ another employee said.
Motel 6 is corporate owned, not franchised, so this is not a case of a largely unaffiliated manager going rogue to make double the rent on a room.
ICE also received information from this location at 1530 North 52nd Drive, Phoenix. Motel 6 says it’s stopped the practice but hasn’t yet condemned it or said if it will fire those responsible
In 2015, the Supreme Court declared it illegal for ICE – or any government agency – to search hotel or motel registries without a warrant.
However, it is not illegal for police to act on tip-offs if employees of those places choose to share information of their own volition.
Yasmeen Pitts O’Keefe, a spokesperson for ICE’s Phoenix division, refused to confirm to the Phoenix New Times whether Motel 6 supplied agents with information.
‘I wouldn’t be able to confirm how we are getting our information. Those are investigative techniques that we wouldn’t be able to talk about,’ she said.
‘If hypothetically we were somewhere – if we did administratively arrest some folks – that happens all the time. We conduct targeted enforcement operations every day.’
Immigration attorney Denise Aguilar, who is based in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler and represents a client taken in at a Motel 6, said she had heard unverified reports that ICE was paying front desk staff $200 per person for reports.
O’Keefe also said that the practice of knocking on doors and inquiring with those inside was ‘routine,’ and said that those questioned could turn police away if they didn’t have a warrant.
Motel 6 says it only became aware of what was going on last week, and that the decision was made at local level without senior Motel 6 approval. Pictured: ICE agents in 2015
Cintia de Leon’s husband, Jose Granados Sanchez, and nephew, Jose Escobar Tovar were arrested at a Motel 6 on August 10, after ICE agents knocked on the door.
The agents asked for Escobar Tovar, in whose name the room was registered, and arrested both men for not having documentation. De Leon’s nephew was deported while her husband remains locked up.
‘I was shocked when they told me that,’ she said. ‘I couldn’t believe it, and until this day, I still cannot believe it.
‘I don’t know if they’re getting something out of all this, turning people in, or what’s the deal.’
In 2015, it emerged that Motel 6 staff in a Warwick, Rhode Island branch were also giving a full list of guests to local police.