New Drug Tunnel Connecting Arizona And Mexico Discovered In Nogales. U.S. police uncovered yet another underground tunnel used to smuggle drugs between Arizona and Mexico.
Authorities in the U.S. and Mexico raided the passageway from both sides of the border on Thursday, Nogales International reported. Inside the 2-by-2-foot tunnel, Mexican police found and seized 550 pounds of marijuana. No arrests were made. The raid was a result of the joint efforts of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) and U.S.
"Through vigilance and close cooperation, we were able to shut down this passageway before it was used to bring significant amounts of narcotics into the United States," Kevin Kelly, assistant special agent in charge of HSI Nogales, said in a statement. According to ICE, the tunnel, which connected Nogales, Ariz., to Nogales, Mexico, was completed as recently as this week. In November, two tunnels were found in Nogales six days apart. DEA Agents Allowed Cocaine-Smuggling. Inside Seized Drug-Smuggling Submarines - Photo Essays. Mexico drug violence: 9 hanged, 14 decapitated in border city of Nuevo Laredo Airport screeners arrested; authorities say they allowed drug smuggling - The Federal Eye. Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 04/26/2012 Apr 26, 2012 10:00 AM EDT TheWashingtonPost Two former and two current airport security screeners were arrested this week on federal charges of drug trafficking and bribery for smuggling large bundles of cocaine and other illegal drugs through security checkpoints at Los Angeles International Airport in exchange for cash, authorities said.
In a 22-count indictment unsealed Wednesday, Justice Department officials said the screeners for the Transportation Security Administration took payments of up to $2,400 to help drug couriers pass suitcases through X-ray machines at security checkpoints. “The allegations in this case describe a significant breakdown of the screening system through the conduct of individuals who placed greed above the nation’s security needs,” U.S. In addition to the TSA officials, one drug courier is in state custody in California and another is expected to surrender tomorrow, authorities said. TSA officers charged in drug smuggling conspiracy. Duane Eleby, a suspected drug courier, was all set to sneak 10 pounds of cocaine through a security checkpoint at Los Angeles International Airport last February with the help of a former Transportation Security Administration employee and a screener.
Skip to next paragraph Subscribe Today to the Monitor Click Here for your FREE 30 DAYS ofThe Christian Science MonitorWeekly Digital Edition Eleby, however, bungled the plan by going to the wrong terminal and was arrested after another TSA screener found the cocaine, which set in motion a series of undercover operations that led to Wednesday's announcement that two former and current TSA employees had been indicted on federal drug trafficking and bribery charges.
A 22-count indictment outlined five incidents where the TSA employees took payments of up to $2,400 to provide drug couriers unfettered access at LAX over a six-month period last year. MORE STORIES: Justice It wasn't immediately known if any of the four had retained attorneys.