What if the tunnels used for drug trafficking were also being used to smuggle migrants? An investigation based on court records from federal courts in Texas and California documented two recent cases in which the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) allegedly used cross-border tunnels not only to move drugs and weapons but also to charge for smuggling migrants.
Here are the details. One of these cases involved the area between Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, and El Paso, Texas. In January 2025, U.S. authorities intercepted calls made by Luis Carlos Dávalos López, a 29-year-old Mexican national identified as a CJNG member.
In these conversations, he discussed with another cartel member how many migrants would cross that week and how much they would be charged. What caught the agents’ attention was his mention that the migrants would be moved through an underground passage connecting the two cities.
The tunnel was shut down on January 10, 2025; it measured approximately 1.8 meters in height and 1.21 meters in width and was equipped with electrical wiring, ventilation, and wooden support beams. It was also connected to El Paso’s public storm drainage system.
According to the case files, Maria del Rosario Navarro Sánchez—who was also linked to this operation—ran a network that had been smuggling methamphetamine and fentanyl into the United States since 2019. She also purchased weapons to smuggle into Mexico and charged fees for transporting migrants.
At a house used as a stash site, agents discovered 26 kg of methamphetamine, along with 20 AK-47-style rifles and two .50-caliber weapons. Navarro Sánchez pleaded guilty to four charges on August 27, 2026. Dávalos López entered a guilty plea on September 4, specifically for the charge of conspiracy to transport migrants into the United States.
However, this wasn’t the only tunnel linked to the CJNG. Five months later, in San Diego, California, agents discovered another passageway beneath a store called Boy Foress, located near the Otay Mesa border. Investigators had begun monitoring the establishment after noticing little customer traffic, yet observing several employees entering and leaving with suitcases and vehicles.
On May 29, 2026, agents tracked vehicle movements and subsequently seized 851 packages of cocaine. That same night, a judge authorized a search of the store, where the tunnel was found. The passageway was equipped with electricity and ventilation, though in some sections it was barely tall enough to stand in.
Four people were arrested and face charges related to the use of the tunnel, as well as the importation and distribution of cocaine. These two cases—documented in U.S. Department of Justice records and guilty pleas from September 2026—illustrate how tunnels linked to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel are associated with various activities, ranging from the smuggling of drugs and weapons to charging fees for migrant crossings.
Source: Milenio
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