Following a three-year investigation, the Justice Department released a report Thursday outlining how Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office exhibited a pattern of racial profiling and discrimination against Latinos in Arizona.

Joe Arpaio (Creative Commons)

Among the abuses listed in the report were immigration patrols, called "sweeps," undertaken by Arpaio's office, based on complaints that Latinos were simply gathering near a business without committing crimes.

According to the Associated Press: 

"The Justice Department's expert on measuring racial profiling said it's the most egregious case of racial profiling in the nation that he has seen or reviewed in professional literature, Perez said.

"Investigators interviewed more than 400 people, including Arpaio, reviewed thousands of documents and toured county jails as part of its probe, he said."

Currently, a federal grand jury is also investigation Arpaio for criminal abuse of power.