The "Baja Metro Tunnel", which U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) says is the longest illicit cross-border tunnel ever discovered along the Southwest border, is seen under Otay Mesa, California, U.S. October 30, 2019. Picture taken October 30, 2019.
US officials said they have discovered the longest smuggling tunnel ever found on the border with Mexico.
Stretching for 1,313m, the tunnel had a lift, rail track, drainage and air ventilation systems, high voltage electrical cables and panels.
The tunnel, which starts in Tijuana and ends in an industrial area half a mile west of the Otay Mesa Port of Entry, and ends at San Diego, south of California in the United States.
The newly discovered tunnel is about 5.5 feet (1.68m) high and 2 feet (0.61m) wide and runs at an average depth of 70 feet (21.3 meters) below the surface, officials said.
While subterranean tunnels are not a new occurrence along the California-Mexico border, the sophistication and length of this particular tunnel demonstrates the time-consuming efforts transnational criminal organizations will undertake to facilitate cross-border smuggling," said Cardell T. Morant, acting special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in San Diego.
The investigations that led to the detection of this advanced tunnel took several years, with the participation of several institutions.
Border Patrol Deputy Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke said, "The investigation continues, and I am confident that our hard work and dedication to uphold the law will lead to future arrests and seizures."
The longest tunnel, which not exceed 904 meters, was discovered also in San Diego.
