Alleged underground drug tunnel discovered in San Diego Authorities say a recently uncovered tunnel connecting Tijuana and San Diego was likely used to traffic drugs, weapons and people across the U.S.-Mexico border. Investigators recovered an estimated $45 million in drugs during the operation. NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Federal authorities uncovered more than 1,000 pounds of cocaine hidden beneath the floorboards of a commercial truck entering the U.S. from Mexico, marking one of the largest drug busts in Southern California this year.The Department of Justice said the half-ton of cocaine was discovered inside the floorboards of a commercial truck and flatbed trailer at the Calexico Port of Entry connecting California and Mexico. Authorities estimate the cocaine has a street value exceeding $20 million.The seizure marks the second-largest cocaine bust in the Southern District of California this year, according to federal prosecutors.FEDS SEIZE $6.4M WORTH OF COCAINE ABOARD OIL TANKER AT PORT OF LOS ANGELES, ARREST SUSPECTED CARTEL SMUGGLER Federal authorities seized more than 1,000 pounds of cocaine, valued at more than $20 million, during an inspection at the Calexico Port of Entry in California. (Department of Justice)Jose Manuel Lopez, 44, a Mexican national and the truck’s sole occupant, was arrested and charged with importing cocaine into the United States.If convicted, Lopez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum penalty of life.In court filings seeking to keep Lopez in custody, prosecutors described the seizure as “a tremendous amount of drugs, even by the standards of this district.”SINALOA CARTEL BOSS ‘EL MAYO’ SENTENCED TO LIFE, ORDERED TO PAY $15B IN DRUG TRAFFICKING PROFITS Authorities removed the wooden floorboards of a commercial trailer after discovering more than 1,000 pounds of cocaine hidden underneath, prosecutors said. (Department of Justice)The only larger cocaine seizure in the Southern District of California this year came in May, when authorities uncovered more than a ton of cocaine worth an estimated $45 million linked to an alleged cross-border drug tunnel.Officials said the trailer was carrying 269 bundles of rebar when U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, working alongside Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration, detected anomalies during an X-ray inspection.CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP Federal investigators uncovered hundreds of packages of cocaine hidden beneath the floorboards of a commercial trailer at the Calexico Port of Entry, prosecutors said. (Department of Justice)After a narcotics detection dog alerted officers the trailer, they unloaded the rebar and removed the wooden floorboards, where they discovered 366 packages of cocaine weighing more than 1,000 pounds, or approximately 454 kilograms, prosecutors said.Lopez pleaded not guilty during his initial appearance in federal court Tuesday. A detention hearing is scheduled for Aug. 3.
