Agents studying massive US-Mexico tunnel

By Marty Graham

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Federal authorities were trying to
determine on Thursday what was smuggled through a sophisticated
tunnel into the United States from Mexico they call one of the
longest ever found.

“Whether the tunnel was used for smuggling aliens,
smuggling narcotics or a worst case scenario, some sort of
weapon, we don’t know,” Michael Unzueta, special agent in
charge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in San
Diego, said at a news conference.

Federal authorities, who uncovered the 2,400-foot (731
meter) tunnel on Wednesday, brought in a forensic team to look
for fingerprints and DNA, and to sample the air and walls, so
they can determine how long the tunnel has been in use and what
it was used for, Unzueta said.

The tunnel has cement walls and supporting planks, is no
less than five feet (1.2 meter) tall and wide, and runs as far
as 60 feet underground, Unzueta said. It has lighting and
ventilation, and a pumping system to drain groundwater.

The U.S. entrance has a cement ramp with a washboard
pattern for better footing. “We believe this tunnel is, in
fact, the largest tunnel ever found on the Southwest border,”
he said.

The passageway links a warehouse in Otay Mesa, California,
with a warehouse near Tijuana international airport in Mexico,
officials said.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) found 200
pounds (90 kg) of marijuana on the U.S. side, while Mexican
authorities said they discovered 2 tons of the drug on that
side of the border.

Because of the sophistication of the tunnel, the DEA is
investigating major drug cartels.

“We know it’s been used for drug traffic but this really
illustrates the dangers and risks of security to Americans,”
said John Fernandez, special agent at the DEA in San Diego.

The tunnel was the forth underground passage found between
Tijuana and the San Diego region in two weeks, but far
surpasses the other three, and most of the tunnels ever found,
in size, Unzueta said. Most tunnels are little more than crawl
spaces.

(Additional reporting by Tim Gaynor in Mexico)