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<\/p>\nBeneath the U.S.\u2013Mexico border, a hidden battle is taking shape. Smugglers are now moving underground, using tunnels, sewer lines, and drainage systems to move migrants and contraband into the United States. Authorities in Laredo warn that smugglers are now turning city infrastructure into a secret gateway, evading the surge of border enforcement above ground.<\/p>\n
From California, to Arizona, to El Paso, officials have discovered these tunnels.<\/p>\n
In one of Laredo’s oldest neighborhoods, residents were shocked when migrants started popping up out of a manhole earlier this year.<\/p>\n
We toured the area with Investigator Joe Baeza with the Laredo Police Department.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere is where we actually intercepted 11 immigrants who were trying to enter the U.S. using the actual sewer line that feeds off the river banks,” Baeza said.<\/p>\n
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Smugglers burrow under the border: Laredo combating sewer tunnel crossings<\/p>\n
The migrants were entering down by the river, directly underneath U.S. forces that have surged to the border in recent months.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have stationed Border Patrol agents that were right up on the banks,\u201d Baeza said.<\/p>\n
Baeza says this is a new strategy for the area. One migrant even got stuck in a drainage tunnel and had to be rescued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve had to put a system of grates and secured and fortified entry points for those systems,\u201d Baeza said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHas the city seen success since those have been installed?\u201d asked reporter Jordan Elder.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo far so good,\u201d Baeza replied.<\/p>\n
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Smugglers burrow under the border: Laredo combating sewer tunnel crossings (City of Laredo)<\/p>\n
Border expert Victor Manjarrez warns that these tactics are becoming more common compared to digging tunnels from scratch.<\/p>\n
He served as the Chief Patrol Agent in El Paso Sector and spent more than 20 years with Border Patrol.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe exploitation of our city infrastructure, I do believe that’s happening probably daily in major cities,\u201d Manjarrez said. “If you see the numbers drop and you see enforcement increase above ground, it isn’t because the human smuggling organizations have stopped, or narcotics smugglers, they just saw a different alternative to bring to illicit cargo.”<\/p>\n
He also points to decades of underground smuggling:<\/p>\n
\u201cSince about 1990 and 1991, we’re talking close to 300 tunnels have been discovered,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Laredo\u2019s recent challenges reflect a broader pattern along the U.S.\u2013Mexico border.<\/p>\n
In Otay Mesa, California, U.S. Border Patrol discovered a tunnel over 2,900 feet long, with ventilation, lighting, electrical wiring, and a rail system for moving contraband.<\/p>\n
In San Luis, Arizona, an incomplete tunnel measured roughly 1,300 feet long, equipped with ventilation, water, electricity, and a rail track, described by authorities as \u201cthe most sophisticated tunnel in U.S. history.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Smugglers burrow under the border (CBP)<\/p>\n
“Law enforcement technology is always at a disadvantage… they’re always trying to catch up with a criminal element that seems to have a greater research and development budget,” Manjarrez says.<\/p>\n
After these underground crossings, Laredo authorities strengthened defenses:<\/p>\n
Steel grates were installed in key drainage systems.<\/p>\n
Entry points are being reinforced and monitored more closely.<\/p>\n
But officials are already on the lookout for what the next strategy will be.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou build the reinforced grate and they\u2019ll come up with a better idea to try and break through it,\u201d Baeza said.<\/p>\n
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Smugglers burrow under the border: Laredo combating sewer tunnel crossings<\/p>\n
The Department of Homeland Security is planning a $100 million expansion of tunnel-detection technology, aiming to have systems funded and operational by the end of 2026.<\/p>\n
The State of Texas is also making new efforts to find tunnels.<\/p>\n