Good morning, it’s Wednesday April 28th and this is The Herald Review’s podcast, the Daily Chirp. We’re excited to bring you a closer look at one of our top stories, events in the community, local history, sports, and more. 

 

Today - Most smugglers being hired by the Mexican cartel to transport undocumented migrants through Cochise County are non-residents. And they’re being recruited via social media.

 

Before we begin, some history.

 

Historic Arizona 80 and its importance to Cochise County’s tourism was the featured presentation on Friday at the Southeast Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce meeting.

 

Jon Donahue, tourism coordinator for the city of Tombstone, along with Bob Nilson, Benson Visitor Center tourism supervisor, have launched the Arizona 80 Foundation. It’s a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the highway’s route through Cochise County and the four towns it connects. 

 

From Exit 303 off Interstate 10 into Benson, travelers can follow Arizona 80 south to Tombstone, Bisbee and Douglas for a 72-mile tour of four historic towns.

 

The original Highway 80 came through here in 1926, starting in Benson and heading south to Douglas, then back up to Rodeo, New Mexico. And Highway 80 is still alive ... Everywhere you go, every mile along the highway, there’s a story to be told. And tourists like to come and hear those stories. It's like taking a step back in history.

 

For information about the Arizona 80 Foundation, visit the website at www.arizona80.org.

 

Today’s history is brought to you by Benson Hospital. Benson Hospital’s comprehensive rehabilitation team strives to get you back on your feet and improve your lifestyle. Offering Physical, Occupational and Speech therapy. For more information visit bensonhospital.org or call 520-586-2262. 

 

Also, The Daily Chirp podcast is giving away 5 Amazon Echo Dots - one every month now through July. You can enter for your chance to win twice a day! Today's code is CHICK and find the other codeword in our “Daily Chirp Podcast Alert” e-newsletter. To enter the sweepstakes go to myheraldreview.com, again today's codeword is: CHICK

 

-

 

Now, our feature story. 

 

Most human smugglers being hired by the Mexican cartel to transport undocumented migrants through Cochise County are non-residents. And they’re recruited via social media. How? According to the Sheriff’s office the cartels are promising big bucks. 

 

Many of these individuals, so called "coyotes," are young people from the Phoenix or Tucson areas. Sheriff Mark Dannels told us that they’re being paid hefty amounts to drive close to the border, pick up their human cargo and get out of Cochise County as fast as possible. 

 

And now that at least three Border Patrol checkpoints that lead out of the county and toward large cities are shut down, getting out of Cochise County has never been easier. Agents that would normally at those checkpoints have instead been shifted to the border to deal with the influx of undocumented persons.

 

Dannels said that it’s very seldom they see people from here trying to transport migrants... but they regularly see people from Phoenix doing it.

 

Last Friday, he arrested a 21-year-old Mesa man on State Route 92 who was driving 14 miles over the speed limit. When Dannels stopped the motorist, identified as Juan Angel Gaeta, he discovered four undocumented migrants as well.

 

Gaeta had been paid $1,000 per migrant, so he made $4,000 in that trip.

 

Two weeks before that encounter, Dannels and a deputy nabbed a Phoenix man who was spotted loading four undocumented migrants into his Dodge truck on SR 92. When he was pulled over the passengers bolted from the truck and ran behind a house. 

 

Those undocumented people were caught that afternoon. 

 

But as mentioned, Cochise County residents for the most part are not being recruited by the Mexican cartel to transport undocumented migrants. Dannels said that it’s because this is a smaller, more rural area compared to Tucson and Phoenix.

 

It’s also a close-knit area and people here are not tolerating what's going on.

 

And in a way this is helpful. Dannels noted that the one positive factor about the non-resident coyotes, is their unfamiliarity with the area.

 

Some of them end up getting lost, or they don't know what the speed limits are and you end up catching them on traffic stops.

 

But unfortunately the negatives outweigh the positives overall.

 

Coyotes who do get away unnoticed with their human charges can easily get onto I-10 and head west now that the Border Patrol checkpoints that lead to the freeway have been closed for months.

 

Many of those undocumented individuals who make it to Phoenix or Tucson are usually indebted financially to the cartel. They become what Dannels calls "modern-day slaves."

 

Apparently, the cartel sells them a bill of goods. They tell them they’ll live the American Dream. But in reality, they end up as modern-day slaves until they pay off their debt.

 

To stay up to date on this story or read more, visit us at myheraldreview.com

 

-

 

Thanks for listening, before we continue, a quick message from our sponsors, Prestige Family Living. 

 

[Insert Prestige ad]

 

-

 

Now, we’d like to highlight the Diamond Mountain retreat center, a non-profit religious organization that teaches people how to retreat from the stressful demands of everyday life.

 

NEW Copy --Brought to you by ApexNetwork Physical Therapy. Voted Best of Cochise County 2020, ApexNetwork provides exceptional care to the Sierra Vista and Benson communities. Choose ApexNetwork for all of your physical therapy needs. To learn more, go to ApexNetworkPT.com.

 

Diamond Mountain retreat center, located off-the-grid just south of Bowie, is a non-profit religious organization that aims to teach individuals how to retreat from the sometimes stressful demands of everyday life.

 

The retreat center also teaches meditation in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition and offers yoga and expansive hiking trails.

 

Hanlie Van Wyk, director of the center said that their aim is to really encourage people to learn how to do a retreat as part of the Buddhist tradition. 

 

Van Wyk, who came to America from her native South Africa and then resided in the Bowie-area after participating in a Diamond Mountain retreat, also spoke to their diverse clientele.

 

They work with people from all walks of life. 

 

They even have YouTube videos where people can learn about the basics like how to meditate or how to sit at an altar.

 

All meditations are translated into English and taught by Tibetan monks.

 

So how does it work? Well, right now with COVID, people pay per night. 

 

The core teachings are always free though. 

 

To learn more visit our full story about the Diamond Mountain retreat center on myheraldreview.com

-

 

Next, The search is on — for the third time —  for someone to take the reins at Southeastern Arizona Communications, the emergency dispatch communications center...  -- brought to you by our sponsors, Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative.

 

[New sponsor audio message]

 

The search is on for someone to take the reins at Southeastern Arizona Communications.

 

interim director Chis Hiser said that the facility's new director, its third, could be named just in time for SEACOM's third anniversary in July.

 

So far, nine people have expressed an interest in the job since it was posted about two months ago. Some are local, some aren’t.

 

So what does it entail? SEACOM provides county and municipal emergency services. The center opened back in July of 2018. A year before that Cochise County supervisors and the Sierra Vista City Council approved an intergovernmental agreement outlining the governance and command structure for the independent central dispatch center. 





A board that includes Sierra Vista City Manager Chuck Potucek and Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels is responsible for hiring the director. The agency's budget is about $2.5 million. 

 

And while someone with a background in public safety is preferred, it's not actually required.

 

What is required is a bachelor's degree and five years of management experience. 

 

It pays $77,096 to $115,644. But apparently the hefty salary has not been enough of an incentive to keep anyone at the helm for more than a year.

 

Two directors have come and gone in just over two years…

 

--

 

Before we go, we’d like to take a moment to remember the life of 

 

Elizabeth Ann Wehrli of Pearce who passed away in Tucson on April 21st at the age of 70. She was born in Cottonwood, Minnesota to John F. Schultz and Irene Helen Schultz. Liz was a retired bookkeeper, and loved her animals that included her horses, donkeys and dogs. She was a faithful wife and supported her husband, traveling with him for his work. In November of 1981 in Leadville, Colorado she married her husband Larry who survives her. She is also survived by her daughters, her seven grandchildren, her seven great grandchildren, as well as her sisters..

 

Memorial Services will be 11:00 am on Saturday, May 1, 2021 at Westlawn Chapel. \

 

Thank you for taking a moment with us today to remember and celebrate Liz’s life.

 

--

 

Thanks for tuning in to the Herald Review podcast today, join us again on Thursday! And remember, the Herald Review is here for you with local news you can trust. For more information on any of the stories you heard about today, visit us at myheraldreview.com. Right now you can become a member starting at just $1.99 per week.

Good morning, it&rsquo;s Wednesday April 28th and this is The Herald Review&rsquo;s podcast, the Daily Chirp. We&rsquo;re excited to bring you a closer look at one of our top stories, events in the community, local history, sports, and more.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Today - Most smugglers being hired by the Mexican cartel to transport undocumented migrants through Cochise County are non-residents. And they&rsquo;re being recruited via social media.
&nbsp;
Before we begin, some history.
&nbsp;
Historic Arizona 80 and its importance to Cochise County&rsquo;s tourism was the featured presentation on Friday at the Southeast Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce meeting.
&nbsp;
Jon Donahue, tourism coordinator for the city of Tombstone, along with Bob Nilson, Benson Visitor Center tourism supervisor, have launched the Arizona 80 Foundation. It&rsquo;s a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the highway&rsquo;s route through Cochise County and the four towns it connects.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
From Exit 303 off Interstate 10 into Benson, travelers can follow Arizona 80 south to Tombstone, Bisbee and Douglas for a 72-mile tour of four historic towns.
&nbsp;
The original Highway 80 came through here in 1926, starting in Benson and heading south to Douglas, then back up to Rodeo, New Mexico. And Highway 80 is still alive ... Everywhere you go, every mile along the highway, there&rsquo;s a story to be told. And tourists like to come and hear those stories. It's like taking a step back in history.
&nbsp;
For information about the Arizona 80 Foundation, visit the website at www.arizona80.org.
&nbsp;
Today&rsquo;s history is brought to you by Benson Hospital. Benson Hospital&rsquo;s comprehensive rehabilitation team strives to get you back on your feet and improve your lifestyle. Offering Physical, Occupational and Speech therapy. For more information visit bensonhospital.org or call 520-586-2262.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Also, The Daily Chirp podcast is giving away 5 Amazon Echo Dots - one every month now through July. You can enter for your chance to win twice a day! Today's code is CHICK and find the other codeword in our &ldquo;Daily Chirp Podcast Alert&rdquo; e-newsletter. To enter the sweepstakes go to myheraldreview.com, again today's codeword is: CHICK
&nbsp;
-
&nbsp;
Now, our feature story.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Most human smugglers being hired by the Mexican cartel to transport undocumented migrants through Cochise County are non-residents. And they&rsquo;re recruited via social media. How? According to the Sheriff&rsquo;s office the cartels are promising big bucks.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Many of these individuals, so called "coyotes," are young people from the Phoenix or Tucson areas. Sheriff Mark Dannels told us that they&rsquo;re being paid hefty amounts to drive close to the border, pick up their human cargo and get out of Cochise County as fast as possible.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
And now that at least three Border Patrol checkpoints that lead out of the county and toward large cities are shut down, getting out of Cochise County has never been easier. Agents that would normally at those checkpoints have instead been shifted to the border to deal with the influx of undocumented persons.
&nbsp;
Dannels said that it&rsquo;s very seldom they see people from here trying to transport migrants... but they regularly see people from Phoenix doing it.
&nbsp;
Last Friday, he arrested a 21-year-old Mesa man on State Route 92 who was driving 14 miles over the speed limit. When Dannels stopped the motorist, identified as Juan Angel Gaeta, he discovered four undocumented migrants as well.
&nbsp;
Gaeta had been paid $1,000 per migrant, so he made $4,000 in that trip.
&nbsp;
Two weeks before that encounter, Dannels and a deputy nabbed a Phoenix man who was spotted loading four undocumented migrants into his Dodge truck on SR 92. When he was pulled over the passengers bolted from the truck and ran behind a house.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Those undocumented people were caught that afternoon.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
But as mentioned, Cochise County residents for the most part are not being recruited by the Mexican cartel to transport undocumented migrants. Dannels said that it&rsquo;s because this is a smaller, more rural area compared to Tucson and Phoenix.
&nbsp;
It&rsquo;s also a close-knit area and people here are not tolerating what's going on.
&nbsp;
And in a way this is helpful. Dannels noted that the one positive factor about the non-resident coyotes, is their unfamiliarity with the area.
&nbsp;
Some of them end up getting lost, or they don't know what the speed limits are and you end up catching them on traffic stops.
&nbsp;
But unfortunately the negatives outweigh the positives overall.
&nbsp;
Coyotes who do get away unnoticed with their human charges can easily get onto I-10 and head west now that the Border Patrol checkpoints that lead to the freeway have been closed for months.
&nbsp;
Many of those undocumented individuals who make it to Phoenix or Tucson are usually indebted financially to the cartel. They become what Dannels calls "modern-day slaves."
&nbsp;
Apparently, the cartel sells them a bill of goods. They tell them they&rsquo;ll live the American Dream. But in reality, they end up as modern-day slaves until they pay off their debt.
&nbsp;
To stay up to date on this story or read more, visit us at myheraldreview.com
&nbsp;
-
&nbsp;
Thanks for listening, before we continue, a quick message from our sponsors, Prestige Family Living.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
[Insert Prestige ad]
&nbsp;
-
&nbsp;
Now, we&rsquo;d like to highlight the Diamond Mountain retreat center, a non-profit religious organization that teaches people how to retreat from the stressful demands of everyday life.
&nbsp;
NEW Copy -- Brought to you by ApexNetwork Physical Therapy. Voted Best of Cochise County 2020, ApexNetwork provides exceptional care to the Sierra Vista and Benson communities. Choose ApexNetwork for all of your physical therapy needs. To learn more, go to ApexNetworkPT.com.
&nbsp;
Diamond Mountain retreat center, located off-the-grid just south of Bowie, is a non-profit religious organization that aims to teach individuals how to retreat from the sometimes stressful demands of everyday life.
&nbsp;
The retreat center also teaches meditation in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition and offers yoga and expansive hiking trails.
&nbsp;
Hanlie Van Wyk, director of the center said that their aim is to really encourage people to learn how to do a retreat as part of the Buddhist tradition.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Van Wyk, who came to America from her native South Africa and then resided in the Bowie-area after participating in a Diamond Mountain retreat, also spoke to their diverse clientele.
&nbsp;
They work with people from all walks of life.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
They even have YouTube videos where people can learn about the basics like how to meditate or how to sit at an altar.
&nbsp;
All meditations are translated into English and taught by Tibetan monks.
&nbsp;
So how does it work? Well, right now with COVID, people pay per night.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
The core teachings are always free though.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
To learn more visit our full story about the Diamond Mountain retreat center on myheraldreview.com
-
&nbsp;
Next, The search is on &mdash; for the third time &mdash;&nbsp; for someone to take the reins at Southeastern Arizona Communications, the emergency dispatch communications center...&nbsp; -- brought to you by our sponsors, Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative.
&nbsp;
[New sponsor audio message]
&nbsp;
The search is on for someone to take the reins at Southeastern Arizona Communications.
&nbsp;
interim director Chis Hiser said that the facility's new director, its third, could be named just in time for SEACOM's third anniversary in July.
&nbsp;
So far, nine people have expressed an interest in the job since it was posted about two months ago. Some are local, some aren&rsquo;t.
&nbsp;
So what does it entail? SEACOM provides county and municipal emergency services. The center opened back in July of 2018. A year before that Cochise County supervisors and the Sierra Vista City Council approved an intergovernmental agreement outlining the governance and command structure for the independent central dispatch center.&nbsp;
 
A board that includes Sierra Vista City Manager Chuck Potucek and Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels is responsible for hiring the director. The agency's budget is about $2.5 million.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
And while someone with a background in public safety is preferred, it's not actually required.
&nbsp;
What is required is a bachelor's degree and five years of management experience.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
It pays $77,096 to $115,644. But apparently the hefty salary has not been enough of an incentive to keep anyone at the helm for more than a year.
&nbsp;
Two directors have come and gone in just over two years&hellip;
&nbsp;
--
&nbsp;
Before we go, we&rsquo;d like to take a moment to remember the life of&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Elizabeth Ann Wehrli of Pearce who passed away in Tucson on April 21st at the age of 70. She was born in Cottonwood, Minnesota to John F. Schultz and Irene Helen Schultz. Liz was a retired bookkeeper, and loved her animals that included her horses, donkeys and dogs. She was a faithful wife and supported her husband, traveling with him for his work. In November of 1981 in Leadville, Colorado she married her husband Larry who survives her. She is also survived by her daughters, her seven grandchildren, her seven great grandchildren, as well as her sisters..
&nbsp;
Memorial Services will be 11:00 am on Saturday, May 1, 2021 at Westlawn Chapel. \
&nbsp;
Thank you for taking a moment with us today to remember and celebrate Liz&rsquo;s life.
&nbsp;
--
&nbsp;
Thanks for tuning in to the Herald Review podcast today, join us again on Thursday! And remember, the Herald Review is here for you with local news you can trust. For more information on any of the stories you heard about today, visit us at myheraldreview.com. Right now you can become a member starting at just $1.99 per week.

Keep your pulse on the greater Sierra Vista area and Cochise County with top news, sports, events and more. The Daily Chirp from Herald/Review Media will keep you engaged and informed of the flutterings around the Hummingbird Capital of the United States.

https://www.myheraldreview.com/

Check out our sponsors!

Lawley Automotive Group

Apex Network Physical Therapy

Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative

Benson Hospital

Prestige Assisted Living

Keep your pulse on the greater Sierra Vista area and Cochise County with top news, sports, events and more. The Daily Chirp from Herald/Review Media will keep you engaged and informed of the flutterings around the Hummingbird Capital of the United States.
<a href="https://www.myheraldreview.com/">https://www.myheraldreview.com/</a>
Check out our sponsors!
<a href="https://www.lawleycars.com/">Lawley Automotive Group</a>
<a href="https://apexnetworkpt.com/sierravistaaz/">Apex Network Physical Therapy</a>
<a href="https://www.ssvec.org/">Sulphur Springs Valley Electric Cooperative</a>
<a href="http://www.bensonhospital.org/">Benson Hospital</a>
<a href="https://www.prestigecare.com/location/prestige-assisted-living-at-sierra-vista">Prestige Assisted Living</a>

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