BATMAN
01-26-2006, 11:46 AM
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/tijuana/images/060126tunnel.jpg
Authorities have found what they call the largest tunnel running into the United States along the U.S.-Mexican border.
About 2 tons of marijuana were inside the tunnel, the Drug Enforcement Administration said, indicating that it appears to be used to transport drugs.
DEA and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents discovered the tunnel Wednesday night. It runs from Tijuana, Mexico, to Otay Mesa, California.
Officials said the tunnel is about seven-tenths of a mile or more than 1,200 yards (1,148 meters) long.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060126/images/tunnel.gif
Initial reports said it is 5 feet high and 3.5 feet wide, with a concrete floor, walls and ceiling. The tunnel also is reportedly lit.
An investigation is under way to determine who helped build the passageway.
Earlier this month, U.S. border patrol agents investigating a caved-in road discovered another tunnel between Mexico and the United States, west of the San Ysidro, California, port of entry.
It was the third such tunnel found in three years near the San Ysidro port, according to Lauren Mack, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Others were found in 2003 and 2004, she said.
"We found trash and other evidence indicating people had been inside recently," Mack said in a phone interview January 11, describing the passage as "primitive."
Tightened border security since the September 11, 2001, attacks is the likely cause for the increase in the tunneling, Mack said.
At least 15 tunnels have been uncovered in California and Arizona since 9/11, she added.
"We've now got a dedicated tunnel task force, which works with the DEA and border patrol to proactively look for tunnels," Mack said.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060126/images/news_tunnel.jpg
Authorities have found what they call the largest tunnel running into the United States along the U.S.-Mexican border.
About 2 tons of marijuana were inside the tunnel, the Drug Enforcement Administration said, indicating that it appears to be used to transport drugs.
DEA and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents discovered the tunnel Wednesday night. It runs from Tijuana, Mexico, to Otay Mesa, California.
Officials said the tunnel is about seven-tenths of a mile or more than 1,200 yards (1,148 meters) long.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060126/images/tunnel.gif
Initial reports said it is 5 feet high and 3.5 feet wide, with a concrete floor, walls and ceiling. The tunnel also is reportedly lit.
An investigation is under way to determine who helped build the passageway.
Earlier this month, U.S. border patrol agents investigating a caved-in road discovered another tunnel between Mexico and the United States, west of the San Ysidro, California, port of entry.
It was the third such tunnel found in three years near the San Ysidro port, according to Lauren Mack, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Others were found in 2003 and 2004, she said.
"We found trash and other evidence indicating people had been inside recently," Mack said in a phone interview January 11, describing the passage as "primitive."
Tightened border security since the September 11, 2001, attacks is the likely cause for the increase in the tunneling, Mack said.
At least 15 tunnels have been uncovered in California and Arizona since 9/11, she added.
"We've now got a dedicated tunnel task force, which works with the DEA and border patrol to proactively look for tunnels," Mack said.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060126/images/news_tunnel.jpg