Long drug tunnel found in Tijuana
October 25, 2016
Mexican prosecutors announced Monday the discovery of a subterranean tunnel in Tijuana, Mexico over 500 meters (1,640 feet) long that went in the direction of the American border. The Mexican attorney general's office did not say if the tunnel reached American territory.
The tunnel was well-equipped with ventilation and lighting, along with rails to push large loads of drugs through. The tunnel was approximately three feet (0.9 meters) wide and four feet (1.2 meters) tall, and 23 feet (seven meters) underground. Prosecutors found more than two metric tons of marijuana in packages at the house where the tunnel began.
Mexican drug syndicates have built many tunnels that go into the United States, primarily to smuggle drugs and weapons into the US. The Sinaloa Cartel, led by infamous drug lord Juan "El Chapo" Guzman, is known to excel at constructing such tunnels.
Mexican federal police also announced that they found 4.2 pounds (1.9 kilograms) of methamphetamine in a wheel of cheese at a package-delivery facility in Mexico City. It was found after an X-ray inspection revealed the cheese had a secret package covered in a sheet of lead and carbon paper. Police suspect the carbon paper was intended to reduce the odor and the lead to impede X-rays. Federal police in Jalisco found 34 pounds (15.4 kilograms) of heroin hidden in another package. Depending on how much was cut, it could have supplied between 150,000 and 1.5 million one-gram doses.
kbd/kl (AP, dpa)