Officials: Truck carrying migrants crashes in Ariz.; 4 dead

[April 28, 2008]  PHOENIX (AP) -- A truck jammed with as many as 60 illegal immigrants crashed and rolled in a remote part of central Arizona on Sunday morning, killing four and injuring many, authorities said.

The truck was carrying possibly 50 to 60 people, an estimated 20 to 30 of whom fled the scene and have not been located, said Vanessa White, spokeswoman for the Pinal County Sheriff's Office.

No arrests have been made, but officers are looking for the driver, who also fled the scene. Investigators believe the people on board were illegal immigrants, White said.

Four males were pronounced dead at the scene, while 27 survivors were taken to hospitals. White did not know their conditions.

Speed and possibly alcohol are believed to be factors in the 5:30 a.m. crash near the town of Arizona City, about 60 miles south of Phoenix, White said. She did not have details on the truck.

Such crashes involving suspected illegal immigration are not uncommon. A collision in Texas killed three people just last month.

[Associated Press]

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