Long border tunnel found in pot raid

SAN DIEGO – Federal authorities in San Diego have made one of the largest marijuana seizures in the United States, confiscating 20 tons of pot near an underground tunnel connecting warehouses on either side of California’s border with Mexico, officials said Wednesday.

Mexican authorities seized another four tons of pot from the warehouse on their side of the border.

In total, between 25 and 30 tons of marijuana were seized from both sides – worth more than $20 million if sold on the streets of San Diego, said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton.

“This is obviously the work of a cartel,” said Morton, who held a news conference outside the warehouse in an industrial park near the Otay Mesa truck crossing, across from Tijuana.

The tunnel ran the length of six football fields under the border and ended at a warehouse in Mexico, Morton said.

The tunnel had lighting, ventilation and a rail system to send loads of illegal drugs into California. But the clandestine passageway was too low to stand up in and was believed to be in operation for only a brief time.