183-Foot Drug Smuggling Tunnel Found Under California-Mexico Border
An international law enforcement effort led to the discovery and shutdown of a 183-foot tunnel being built to smuggle drugs, weapons, and people under the border into California. The sophisticated tunnel utilized electricity, a ventilation system, a rail system, and an electric hoist to move their illicit cargo from Mexico to the U.S.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations special agents teamed up with Mexican law enforcement officials in Mexicali, Baja California, to locate and seize a sophisticated smuggling tunnel on August 2, according to information obtained from ICE officials.
The team discovered a tunnel inside a home in Mexicali located along the border with California, officials stated. The tunnel ran approximately 183 feet at about 22 feet below the surface to a location approximately three feet north of the border wall in Calexico, California, officials reported.
While the tunnel did not yet have an exit in California, the entrance to the three-foot by four-foot tunnel measured approximately 12 feet by ten feet and utilized an electric hoist to lower the people or drugs underground. The drug traffickers installed an electrical system, ventilation, and a rail cart system to move their cargo through the tunnel.
“These types of tunnels enable drug traffickers to conduct illicit activities virtually undetected across the U.S.–Mexico border,” Cardell T. Morant, special agent in charge of HSI San Diego said in a written statement. “Discovering and shutting down these tunnels deals a major blow to drug trafficking organizations because it denies them the ability to smuggle drugs, weapons, and people across the border.”
“This is an ongoing HSI-led investigation with assistance from the El Centro Sector Border Patrol and the government of Mexico, HSI officials noted. “The HSI San Diego Tunnel Task Force thanks the government of Mexico for its cooperation in this investigation.”
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Face
Authorities seize 2.8 tons of meth and fentanyl at U.S. border
Law enforcement officials last week seized 2.8 tons of methamphetamine and fentanyl powder at a U.S.-Mexico border crossing in California, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced Wednesday. Officials said that the drugs are estimated to be worth more than $12.9 million and that it is "believed to be one of the largest methamphetamine seizures in the nation's history."
"This amount of fentanyl and methamphetamine is enough to ruin countless lives and fund transnational criminal organizations," Pete Flores, CBP director of field operations in San Diego, said in a statement. "I'm proud of our officers' efforts at all Ports of Entry within the San Diego Field Office to intercept this and all smuggling attempts."
Officials said that on August 5, CBP agents encountered Mexican citizen Carlos Gerardo Symonds Saavedra, 53, attempting to drive his truck and trailer across the border. The manifest indicated he was transporting a commercial shipment of plastic parts, according to the Department of Justice. An initial scan of the truck and trailer found "anomalies," according to CBP, requiring more detailed examination at an inspection dock. During this second inspection, a canine team indicated there were illicit drugs in the trailer.
Officers seized 414 packages containing nearly 5,528 pounds of meth and 127 pounds of fentanyl powder at the Otay Mesa, California Cargo Port of Entry. Authorities also seized the vehicle.
Symonds Saavedra was arrested and faces federal charges that carry a maximum penalty of life in prison and a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years, along with a $10 million fine. He was transported to the Metropolitan Correctional Center in San Diego and has been turned over to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations.
"While this drug seizure is significant, we know that these transnational criminal organizations will continue to illegally smuggle their illicit drugs across our border," San Diego Homeland Security Investigations special agent in charge Cardell T. Morant said in a statement. "HSI and its law enforcement partners will remain vigilant in our mission to prevent these drugs from crossing the border and entering our communities."
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