Scottsdale school rape suspect in U.S. illegally

By Mike Sakal
Tribune

A custodian at Saguaro High School accused of raping a 14-yearold girl on the Scottsdale campus is an illegal immigrant from Mexico and shouldn't have been eligible to work in the United States, an immigration official said Wednesday. Russell Ahr, a spokesman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the paperwork that Roberto Lemus-Retana provided to ABM Janitorial Services, the company that contracts with the Scottsdale Unified School District, is counterfeit.

Or, there is a possibility Lemus-Retana was using someone else's name and Social Security number, Ahr said.

The school district wasn't aware Lemus-Retana was an illegal immigrant until speaking with the Tribune on Wednesday evening, said Dave Peterson, the district's chief financial officer.

However, the district had already discussed severing ties with ABM, Peterson said. The district is waiting for investigations to be complete before making any decisions about its relationship with the company.