A secret tunnel discovered last week on the US-Mexico border will be sealed off by Mexican authorities, a military official in Ciudad Juarez said Saturday.
The tunnel, discovered on January 10, connects the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez with the Texas city of El Paso. It measures about 1,000 feet on the Mexican side and is equipped with lighting, ventilation and reinforced to prevent collapse, officials said.
Hidden in the storm sewer system that runs between both cities, its access is about 6 feet high and 4 feet wide, making it easy for people or contraband to pass through, said Gen. Jose Lemus, commander of the Ciudad Juarez military garrison, which guards the tunnel.
Said Victor Manjarrez, a former border patrol sector chief with more than 20 years of experience CBS affiliate KDBC that connecting tunnels through the storm sewer system is a common practice among smugglers.
“This is definitely not a mom and dad operation at all. It’s gone way beyond that,” he added.
Christian Torres/Anadolu via Getty Images
Christian Torres/Anadolu via Getty Images
An investigation into its construction is ongoing, officials said.
The construction of the tunnel “must have taken a long time … it could have been one or two years,” Lemus told reporters, declining to give details on how long it had been working, or on possible builders and operators.
He said the Mexican attorney general’s office is responsible for the investigation and will be in charge of determining whether there was complicity by the authorities due to the fact that it was built without them noticing.
Lemus also said traffickers discussed clues about the tunnel’s existence and location on social media platforms like TikTok.
Christian Torres/Anadolu via Getty Images
Ahead of US President Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, both sides of the US-Mexico border have stepped up security measures, as the returning Republican has promised mass deportations of migrants soon after he takes office.
In the state of Chihuahua, which includes Ciudad Juarez, authorities reported a fire at a temporary camp for undocumented migrants, prompting the evacuation of 39 adults and 17 minors, according to state police.
According to the Mexican newspaper Reforma, the fire was started by some of the migrants who were camping there to resist attempts by immigration authorities to detain them and transfer them to Mexico City for later deportation.
The National Migration Institute did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.
