The border of Mexico and the U.S. has seen its fair share of tunnels, although this discovery is one of the most extensive and intricate that law enforcement in the area has ever uncovered.

The tunnel stretched 800m from a house in Tijuana through to a lot in San Diego, where it was shielded by a rubbish bin. When the tunnel was discovered authorities seized more than a tonne of cocaine and seven tonnes of marijuana, which is a decent heist by anyone’s standards.

More from the Guardian:

It was the 13th sophisticated secret passage found along California’s border with Mexico since 2006, including three on the same short street in San Diego…

The elevator, which was big enough for eight to 10 people, was located in the closet of a Tijuana house whose floors were strewn with mattresses…

“It’s a rabbit hole,” [U.S, attorney Laura] Duffy told reporters. “Just the whole way that it comes up and that it comes up out right into the open, it is a bit ingenious, I think, and it’s something completely different than what we’ve seen.”

Investigators didn’t know when the tunnel was completed. Margarita Ontiveros, who works at a law office next to the San Diego lot, said the tenants arrived about a year ago and often bought and sold wooden pallets.

“They loaded and unloaded a lot of pallets,” Ontiveros said. “They sold very cheap.”

One can usually afford to sell pallets cheaply when there are tonnes of cocaine flying about, although props to the criminals for their ingenuity:

The San Diego-Tijuana region is popular because its clay-like soil is relatively easy to dig with shovels and pneumatic tools, and both sides of the border have warehouses that provide cover for trucks and heavy equipment.

Build a wall and they will tunnel under it Donald.

[source:guardian]

[imagesource:time]