Mexican police have found an 800-metre long tunnel used by a gang to sneak drugs from Tijuana to the California city of San Diego, authorities said Thursday.
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Agents arrested 16 suspects in Mexico and six in the United States, and confiscated about 12 tons of marijuana, Duffy told reporters. The shaft connected to an underground passageway, which included lighting, ventilation and a rail system, leading to the U.S.-Mexico border.
The people detained, ages 21 to 50, were caught off-guard when Mexican authorities arrived in the warehouse with a search warrant, police said.
Another tunnel was discovered at the start of August also in Tijuana, though it was incomplete and came short of crossing the border with the US.
The tunnel is the tenth large-scale drug smuggling tunnel discovered in the San Diego area since 2006. “Just when they think they’re ready to move, we put it out of business”.
Guzman, the world’s most wanted drug trafficker, escaped in July from a Mexican maximum security prison through a mile-long tunnel that surfaced right in his cell. Officials would not confirm what they were searching for or if a tunnel had been found inside. No shots were fired. Authorities say the marijuana was wrapped in 873 packages.
San Diego State University professor Roberto Hernandez said most drug trafficking happens in legitimate points of entry. Two Tijuana residents, Isaias Enriquez, 53, and Isidro Silva, 27, have been charged with conspiracy in US federal court. The second warehouse was to receive shipments from the warehouse on the border in San Diego.
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The CNS explained the discovery of the tunnel late Wednesday is the result of weeks of investigation, after a large flow of trucks were detected coming in and out of a warehouse.
