Police seize 12 tons of pot, close tunnel
SAN DIEGO — Authorities seized 12 tons of marijuana and arrested 22 people after discovering one of the longest crossborder tunnels between the U.S. and Mexico, officials said Thursday.
The passage connecting warehouses in San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico, was about 730 metres long and nine metres deep. It was lit, ventilated and equipped with a rail system — hallmarks of the most sophisticated tunnels found along the border.
Near- simultaneous police stings on Wednesday resulted in six arrests in San Diego and 16 in Mexico. Authorities recovered two tons of marijuana in the U.S. and 10 tons in Mexico.
The sting came after an undercover agent for U.S. Homeland Security Investigations agreed to provide the drug smugglers with drivers and use of a warehouse in exchange for a $10,000 payment for each truckload of drugs moved.
The discovery demonstrates the enduring appeal of tunnels to smugglers, despite the significant time and money required to build one.
Dozens of tunnels have been found along the U.S.-Mexico border in recent years, some equipped with hydraulic lifts and electric rail cars.
“We see a super tunnel open for business once every year or so,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy. “Just when they think they’re ready to move, we put it out of business. We continue to make good on our promise to relentlessly pursue and shut down any tunnel as soon as it opens.”
The San Diego-Tijuana region is popular because its claylike soil is relatively easy to dig and both sides of the border have warehouses that provide cover for trucks and heavy equipment.
It was unclear which drug trafficking organization orchestrated the latest passage but the region is largely controlled by Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel, whose leader Joaquin (El Chapo) Guzman escaped from a maximumsecurity prison in Mexico in July through an elaborate tunnel.