Tijuana-San Diego: an unconventional tunnel

Last week, in San Diego, US authorities seized several tons of marijuana in a truck inside a warehouse. Where did that come from? Inside the building, they discovered something else: a mysterious tunnel, which seemed to be the answer. The tunnel –approximately 360 meters long- crossed the border with Mexico, linking the warehouse in San Diego with another in Tijuana. Both entrances were hidden, blocked by bundles. After clearing the entrances of the tunnel, Mexican and US policemen found inside another consignment of drugs, which added up to 14 tons.

With US intensification of security and restrictions on the border, Mexican drug tycoons have invented a new way to make their “products” reach the US market: building tunnels. These underground structures have lighting, ventilation and even rail tracks, which makes transporting drugs easier. Tunnels have been a good solution for Mexican drug traffickers to avoid the thorough controls on the US border. Besides, they are not very difficult to dig and build, thanks to the claylike soil of the area. More than 70 tunnels have been found on the border since October 2008.

The trend of using tunnels to pass drugs from Mexico to –mainly- California is posing a huge problem to the US police forces in the area, since it is very difficult to actually find the tunnels and prosecute the traffickers. Through these tunnels, huge amounts of drugs travel to the US and are then sold more easily, which undermines police efforts. Regarding this issue, should we just assume that crime is always a step ahead of law? or, is there any possibility to actually stop this problem? This is all again related to the drug cartels. How can the Mexican state bring down these crime organizations? Would more cooperation and coordination between Mexico and the US be positive in fighting drug trafficking? Let’s believe that, in a moment of desperation, Mexico or the US legalize drugs: what would be the immediate consequence for the cartels and the drug market?

The New York Times 17/11/11

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/17/us/us-mexico-tunnel-leads-to-tons-of-marijuana.html?_r=1&scp=5&sq=mexico&st=cse