Massive secret tunnel used to smuggle $45 million worth of cocaine into California, prosecutors allege

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Underneath a seemingly unassuming “Buy 4 Less” store in a San Diego County neighborhood hid a sprawling secret — a tunnel 55 feet deep and nearly 2,000 feet long that was used to smuggle some $45 million worth of cocaine from Mexico to California, prosecutors allege.The subterranean passageway in Otay Mesa, complete with reinforced walls, a rail system, ventilation and electricity, is believed to have been operated by the Jalisco New Generation cartel and was discovered by a Homeland Security task force last week, according to the U.S.Department of Justice.On Monday, four men were charged with participating in a scheme to use the tunnel to traffic massive amounts of narcotics into America.Homeland Security investigators began paying close attention to the Buy 4 Less in December when they observed suspicious activity around the store.

A new group of seven or eight “employees” was seen regularly going in and out of the building carrying a large number of suitcases.Customers, on the other hand, did not appear to be frequenting the business, prosecutors said.

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That betrayal may have triggered a political and criminal reckoning on both sides of the border.On Friday, agents observed a man loading heavy items into a van outside the store and then driving to a nearby mechanic’s shop.Another man, identified as 26-year-old Brandon Escalante Sandoval of Mexico, was seen riding around on a bicycle conducting surveillance, prosecutors said.Escalante Sandoval then approached the parked van, removed a key concealed in the gas cap and backed it up, allowing a group of people to move three deep freezers from the van into the bed of the truck and load them with packages.Another man, identified as 32-year-old Jose Jimenez of San ...