Authorities on Wednesday said they found “an active drug-smuggling tunnel” that ran from Mexico to Nogales, Ariz., before dismantling it.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said in a statement that the tunnel was hidden underneath the porch of a house located near the U.S.-Mexico border.
After more investigative efforts, authorities found the tunnel led them to a drainage tunnel in Mexico, according to ICE. In the house, officials found “numerous excavation tools,” after obtaining a state warrant, the statement adds.
The tunnel is around 70 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 2 feet tall, extending approximately 25 feet into Mexico. Both entries to the tunnel on the U.S. and Mexican side have been sealed off.
The tunnel’s discovery shows that Mexican organized crime rings have persisted in trying to smuggle drugs across the border, via bypassing border gates.
In the past several years, several dozen tunnels stretching from Mexico to the United States have been discovered, many of them in San Diego.
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