EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Police in Chihuahua, Mexico, say they are investigating social media claims of a possible second illegal tunnel between El Paso and Juarez, Mexico.
On Jan. 9, U.S. Border Patrol agents acting on intelligence from Homeland Security Investigations discovered a man-made tunnel originating in Mexico, going under the Rio Grande and leading to El Paso’s storm drain system. The quarter-mile underground structure has since been filled with concrete on the U.S. side and obstructed in part on the Mexican side.
The new investigation stems from smugglers’ online claims they can cross migrants into the United States through a second functioning tunnel. Those online publications reportedly have been taken down since news outlets in Juarez published reports about the claims.
“Our cyber security team came upon these videos where (smugglers) apparently are promoting a new tunnel. A line of investigation has been opened to determine the date the video was recorded and a possible location,” said Luis Aguirre, chief of staff of the Chihuahua state police.
Aguirre said state authorities keep permanent communication with the U.S. Border Patrol and will be watching out for relevant information gleaned from migrants they arrest as to how they crossed to the United States.
“It’s part of our permanent information exchange, the police intelligence being developed to determine if it exists, where it is and, obviously, how we will intervene,” Aguirre said.
A federal official in El Paso told Border Report on Tuesday that U.S. authorities are aware of the internet videos but that investigators have not found evidence of a second tunnel while looking for migrants who may be hiding in storm drains near the border wall.
"It wouldn't be the first time smugglers make false claims to migrants," the source said.