A cross-border tunnel was discovered near the DeConcini port of entry in Nogales on Thursday, authorities said.
Border Patrol agents were contacted by Mexican officials regarding the tunnel entrance found in Nogales, Sonora, states a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.
The federal agents, along with Mexican authorities, investigated the tunnel and found that it was about 122 feet long, just over 2 feet wide and 3 feet tall, officials said.
The tunnel was not completed and “appeared to be intended for a water basin just north of the international boundary fence,” states the release. It penetrated the international boundary by less than 1 foot, according to officials.
Since 1990 when the first illegal tunnel was discovered in the border community of Douglas in Cochise County, authorities have seized more than 17,500 pounds of narcotics in the Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector in illicit tunnels, according to federal authorities.
Of the 114 cross-border tunnels discovered, 108 were within the city limits of Nogales, officials said. The discovery of tunnels has decreased, said authorities, adding that seven tunnels were found in fiscal year 2012, and three were found this past year.
