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Smuggling Tunnel To Mexico ‘Most Sophisticated In US History,’ Complete With Rail System, Authorities Say

REUTERS/Loren Elliott

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A tunnel intended for smuggling that stretches from Arizona to Mexico includes a “rail system” and “electrical wiring,”  federal officials said Thursday.

“This appears to be the most sophisticated tunnel in U.S. history, and certainly the most sophisticated I’ve seen in my career,” Acting Chief Patrol Agent Carl E. Landrum of the Border Patrol’s Yuma Sector said, according to the Associated Press.

The tunnel also includes a “ventilation system,” “extensive reinforcement” and “water lines,” federal officials said, according to the AP. Homeland Security Investigations discovered the tunnel in July, the AP reported.

Pictures depict the tunnel as around three feet wide and four feet high, a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol news release said, according to the AP.  (RELATED: Longest-Ever Smuggling Tunnel Discovered Along The US-Mexico Border)

An illegal smuggling tunnel, now used for training federal officers, is seen under the border between Mexico and the United States, in San Diego, California, U.S., June 4, 2018. REUTERS/Mike Blake

An illegal smuggling tunnel, now used for training federal officers, is seen under the border between Mexico and the United States, in San Diego, California, U.S., June 4, 2018. REUTERS/Mike Blake

The Trump administration announced a ban on all unessential travel at the U.S. northern and southern borders in March. Canada and Mexico’s borders also banned non-essential travel in March, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf said. The ban was extended in June, the Mexican government declared.

Arrests dropped in April to some of the lowest levels on the U.S.-Mexico border after the president tightened restrictions on border crossing, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

CBP didn’t immediately return a voicemail from the Daily Caller News Foundation seeking comment.

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