Authorities Discover Underground Drug Tunnel in San Diego

Authorities have uncovered an underground tunnel connecting Tijuana and San Diego. This passage is believed to have facilitated the trafficking of drugs, weapons, and people across the U.S.-Mexico border. Investigators recovered approximately $45 million worth of drugs during the operation.

Federal officials also found over 1,000 pounds of cocaine hidden beneath the floorboards of a commercial truck entering the U.S. from Mexico. This discovery ranks among the largest drug busts in Southern California this year. The Department of Justice reported finding half a ton of cocaine in the floorboards of a truck and flatbed trailer at the Calexico Port of Entry, which links California and Mexico. Authorities estimate the street value of the cocaine to exceed $20 million.

According to federal prosecutors, this is the second-largest cocaine bust in the Southern District of California this year. The largest seizure involved more than a ton of cocaine, with an estimated value of $45 million, uncovered in a cross-border drug tunnel in May.

Jose Manuel Lopez, a 44-year-old Mexican national and the sole occupant of the truck, was arrested. He faces charges of importing cocaine into the U.S. If convicted, Lopez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum of life imprisonment.

Prosecutors have described the recent seizure as involving “a tremendous amount of drugs, even by the standards of this district.” Nearly 366 packages of cocaine, weighing over 1,000 pounds or approximately 454 kilograms, were found concealed beneath the truck’s wooden floorboards. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, working alongside Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration, detected the cocaine after a narcotics detection dog alerted them during an X-ray inspection.

Lopez pleaded not guilty during his initial appearance in federal court. A detention hearing is set for August 3.