Man Accused of Burglarizing Office of Arizona Democrat Is Illegal Alien, Says Kari Lake

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, then a candidate, attends a roundtable in Phoenix, Arizona, on Oct. 27, 2022. Olivier Touron/AFP via Getty Images

Arizona Republican governor frontrunner Kari Lake said on Monday that a suspect who was arrested after allegedly breaking into the campaign headquarters of Democratic nominee for governor Katie Hobbs in downtown Phoenix on Oct. 25 is residing illegally in the United States.

Lake revealed the new details while speaking on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight” on Monday, claiming recent reports are legit and the suspect, identified as Daniel Mota Dos Reis, is “currently in this country illegally.”

“I’m glad that you just [asked] that,” Lake told Carlson, adding that the case “proves the point that having a wide-open border means more crime, higher incidents of crime for American citizens, and that’s what we’re seeing here in Arizona.”

NTD News, The Epoch Times’ sister media, has contacted the Phoenix Police Department to ask if they’re able to verify Lake’s claim.

Last week, authorities arrested the 36-year-old man in connection to the break-in, Phoenix police confirmed in a statement two days after the incident occurred. Officials did not say whether the crime was politically motivated.

An officer saw a news story with surveillance photos of the suspect and recognized him as the man arrested for a burglary at another office in the area, police said. The officer contacted the jail to ensure the suspect would not be released and re-arrested him for the burglary at Hobbs’ office.

The man had items missing from Hobbs’ office with him when he was arrested for the unrelated burglary, said Phoenix Police Sgt. Phil Krynsky.

Hobbs’ campaign manager, Nicole DeMont, had also said items were taken during the burglary, but the campaign has declined to say what they were.

Burglary Claims

In an Oct. 26 statement, DeMont accused Lake and her allies of “spreading dangerous misinformation” and “inciting threats against anyone they see fit,” but stopped short of blaming Lake or her supporters for the break-in.

The Arizona Democratic Party, without any supporting evidence, said that the burglary was a “direct result” of Lake and “Republicans spreading lies and hate.”

“Make no mistake—this is a direct result of Kari Lake, and fringe Republicans spreading lies and hate and inciting violence—and it is despicable,” the affiliate said in a statement on Twitter.

Lake, meanwhile, has lashed out at legacy media outlets for spreading “fake news” and not exercising due diligence in trying to corroborate Hobbs’ statement using credible sources before publishing stories.

Republican candidate for governor of Arizona Kari Lake speaks to the press in Peoria, Arizona, on Oct. 26, 2022. Olivier Touron/AFP via Getty Images

The GOP nominee for governor said while meeting with police officers and firefighters, “my desperate opponent, who is sinking like a lead weight in water, pulled a stunt, and you guys fell for it. She put out a defamatory statement, and you all ran with it.”

“You didn’t do your journalistic duty. It was malpractice in journalism like I’ve never seen before. And it was an effort, I believe, to influence this election.”

Lake, a former television anchor who is in a heated race against Democrat Hobbs, accused many in the legacy media of being “propagandists” and “an arm of the Democrat Party.”

“She [Hobbs] knew darned well I had nothing to do with it. So she puts out a statement, and right away, your gatekeepers here at the Democrat Party jump on it. And they put out a statement, which was the cue to you to start running with it,” she said.

Lake said her campaign is considering possible legal action.

In the meantime, Arizona state Rep. Jake Hoffman (R) announced he would introduce a bill to hold news outlets accountable for disseminating information to interfere with an election.

Allan Stein and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

From NTD News