An anonymous caller tipped off the Mexican Army about a smuggling tunnel in Nogales, Sonora. The caller reported seeing gunmen standing outside a two-story house and became suspicious.
According to Mexican Army officials, last Thursday the tunnel was discovered to be equipped with electricity and ventilation. The tunnel was “described as a football field-long tunnel with elaborate electricity and ventilation systems” according to U.S. officials. Victor Brabble, a U.S. Border Patrol spokesman said the tunnel did not cross into the U.S.
The Star Telegram reported that “soldiers discovered a fake wall inside a storage closet under a staircase that led to a dark room with buckets and clothes. After lifting a drain cover in that room, soldiers found another staircase at the entrance of the tunnel that went 16 feet underground and measured a yard in diameter. Light bulbs lit the underground passage and pipes stretched across the 120-yard tunnel that Mexican army officials believe was built to smuggle drugs.”
On December 6, the Mexican Army also discovered a tunnel in Tecate, Mexico. The Mexican Army seized approximately 294 grams of marijuana, and detained eight people on the property.
According to a press release issued by the Army, the tunnel was 1.5 meters wide and 135 meters long. The tunnel had a cement floor, ventilation systems, lights and a section containing rails.
As in the Nogales tunnel, the Mexican Army was alerted to the Tecate tunnel by an anonymous tipster.