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Trial For Migrant Aid Volunteer Ends As Felony Trial Looms

Scott Warren is the last of nine defendants charged with federal misdemeanor crimes for leaving food and water out on a national wildlife refuge in southern Arizona.

Warren was charged with abandoning property and for driving on unauthorized roads on the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge in 2017.

During his trial, Warren said he acted on religious beliefs and that the spirits of the migrant dead “continue to dwell” in the desert.

Federal wildlife officials contend leaving discarded items in the refuge could endanger wildlife.

At the end of the month, Warren goes to trial again, this time on human smuggling charges. Those charges are felonies.

Fronteras Desk senior editor Michel Marizco is an award-winning investigative reporter based in Flagstaff.