New border tunnel found near Otay industrial plant
By Tania Navarro, SDNN
Friday, March 12, 2010



TIJUANA — A 250-foot tunnel possibly used to smuggle drugs and people into U.S. territory was found near the parking lot of an industrial plant in the Otay area, very close to the Otay Mesa port of entry.

After a report done by the Pioneer electronics factory, Tijuana’s Police Department, Baja’s State Police, and the Mexican Army surrounded the location and discovered the passageway Thursday afternoon.

The building where the tunnel was located was an abandoned property, apparently a warehouse with no signs and a regular fence. The area was under construction.

Baja’s State Police said that the entrance to the tunnel was about 4 feet wide and 6 feet deep. Authorities also found clothes, buckets, shovels, and sacks near the area.

Two suspects were apprehended at the scene. Daniel Haro and Isidro Lopez were in a parked red SUV nearby. They confessed to guarding the area in order to inform someone else what was happening at the time, the State police said.

The San Diego Multiagency Tunnel Task Force said it is unknown if the tunnel crosses all the way to American territory.

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