Officials uncovered an elaborate tunnel they say was used to smuggle just under a ton of cocaine from Mexico to a southern California warehouse.Drug smugglers are looking to evade customs by burrowing underground. Federal prosecutors say the tunnel is 1,744 feet long connecting Tijuana, Mexico, to a warehouse in San Diego just east of the Port of Entry. At 61ft deep and 4ft diameter, prosecutors said the tunnel has reinforced walls, a rail system, electricity, and ventilation.
The haul consisted of around $25m of Drugs Seized, 1,762 Pounds of Cocaine, 164 Pounds of methamphetamine and 3.5 pounds of heroin
Biden’s view on drugs and Mexican cartels is a complicated one. “No one should go to jail for a drug [use] offense,” President Joe Biden said in March 2021 but he has since extended policies targeting low-level drug crimes, making prison sentences more likely. On the cartels, Biden has faced widespread criticism for border policies which mean, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody says, “Mexican drug cartels are profiting off the mass migration of unvetted immigrants.” The Department of Homeland Security said under oath Biden’s policies have not contributed to an influx of migrants.
What happens now? “The War on Drugs, not the war in Afghanistan, is America’s longest war.” John Hudak, a senior fellow of Brookings Governance wrote last year. Despite this, it is the border policies that are likely to play a bigger part in midterms campaigning. Expect a lot of talk about “alien children”/”unaccompanied minors” and “illegal”/”undocumented” migrants depending on which side of the political divide you sit.
