NOGALES - U.S. and Mexican law enforcement agents discovered a recently completed smuggling tunnel linking the two countries in simultaneous raids late Thursday, officials said.
The entrances to the tunnel, described as a sophisticated passageway its builders planned to use to smuggle drugs, were discovered in a home in Nogales, Ariz. and an apartment in Nogales, Mexico, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.
The investigation has been under way since April, said Ramona Sanchez, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration spokeswoman. The tunnel was about 3 feet in diameter and 100 yards long, she said.
"It had not yet been used for the intended purpose," Sanchez said. She said no arrests had yet been made.
More details of the tunnel and the investigation that led to its discovery were expected to be released later Friday by ICE and DEA officials at a press briefing at the U.S. Port of Entry in Nogales, Sanchez said.
