The suspect who was arrested in the alleged burglary of Arizona Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs’ campaign office is an illegal immigrant from Portugal who is wanted by immigration authorities, according to a report.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement told Phoenix-based 12News that 36-year-old Daniel Mota Dos Reis is a citizen of Portugal who came to the United States as a registered student in 2018 and is now violating “the terms of his admission.”
ICE public affairs officer Yasmeen Pitts O’Keefe said Mota is “currently at-large for administrative immigration violations for failing to maintain his status as a registered student at an academic institution.”
Police arrested Mota last Thursday and charged him in connection to the Hobbs campaign headquarters break-in. He was released on bond before an immigration detainer was issued, ICE told 12News.
Daniel Mota Dos Reis, 32, is accused of breaking into Katie Hobbs’ campaign headquarters in Phoenix.
(Courtesy of KSAZ-TV)
Hobb’s office first announced the burglary on Oct. 26 and attributed the crime to “dangerous misinformation” spread by her opponent, Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake.
“Let’s be clear: For nearly two years, Kari Lake and her allies have been spreading dangerous misinformation and inciting threats against anyone they see fit. The threats against Arizonans attempting to exercise their constitutional rights and their attacks on elected officials are the direct result of a concerted campaign of lies and intimidation,” Hobbs campaign manager Nicole DeMont said at the time.
However, police have not said there was a political motivation in the burglary.
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Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs speaks at a roundtable event in Phoenix, Monday, Sept. 19, 2022.
(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Investigators named Mota as a suspect after a patrol officer saw a news story Oct. 26 featuring surveillance video from the crime scene. The officer recognized a man in the video as a suspect who was arrested earlier for another unrelated commercial burglary, police said.
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The suspect, Mota, was in jail but was scheduled to be released. Authorities said the officer contacted the jail and was able to re-arrest Mota, who is charged with one count of third-degree burglary for the campaign headquarters break-in on Oct. 24.
Arizona gubernatorial candidates Katie Hobbs, left, and Kari Lake, right, stump ahead of their showdown next month.
(Reuters)
ICE learned about Mota’s immigration status after his arrest by the Phoenix Police Department, but O’Keefe said that Mota “had bonded out of Maricopa County Sheriff’s custody prior to a detainer being issued.”
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Fox News Digital has contacted ICE for comment.
Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
