Federal authorities have charged four individuals for using a complex tunnel to move drugs from Tijuana into San Diego. The operation ended with the confiscation of over a ton of cocaine.

The 2,000-foot subterranean corridor beneath Otay Mesa

The scale of the infrastructure discovered by the Homeland Security Task Force reveals a high level of engineering investment.. According to the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of California, the tunnel stretched nearly 2,000 feet from Tijuana, Mexico, to a retail site south of San Diego. The passage was situated 55 feet underground and stood nearly five feet tall, featuring reinforced walls, electricity, a ventilation system, and a rail system for transporting cargo.

This level of sophistication is not an isolated incident but part of a long-standing trend where transnational criminal organizations invest heavily in "narco-tunnels" to bypass the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. By utilizing subterranean routes, smugglers can move massive quantities of narcotics without facing the scrutiny of customs agents, turning commercial properties into clandestine hubs.

Seizing 2,269.87 pounds of cocaine across three vehicles

The investigation reached its climax on May 29, 2026, when agents observed a complex hand-off involving a white van and a mechanic shop at 923½ Coolidge Avenue. as reported in the criminal complaint, Brandon Escalante used a bicycle to conduct counter-surveillance before retrieving a vehicle key hidden in a gas cap to move the van into the shop. this coordinated effort allowed the group to transfer narcotics into trucks and vans using deep freezers to conceal the packages.

The resulting traffic stops by San Diego County Sheriff's deputies led to the recovery of three separate shipments. One truck contained 630.96 pounds of suspected cocaine, a second truck held 1,034.84 pounds, and a van driven by Antonio Cortez contained 604.06 pounds. In total, field tests confirmed that 2,269.87 poudns of the seized substance was cocaine.

The 'Buy 4 Less' storefront and the suitcase strategy

Central to the operation was a retail business known as Buy 4 Less, which served as the U.S. terminus for the tunnel. From December 2025 to May 2026, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Tunnel Task Force agents monitored the warehouse,noting that the activity did not align with a legitimate retail business. Investigators observed a group of seven or eight employees, including Gregorio Epifanio Hernandez Lopez, moving large numbers of suitcases in and out of the store.

The use of a retail front like Buy 4 Less provides a layer of "commercial camouflage," allowing smugglers to explain away the frequent arrival of vehicles and the movement of large containers. While agents initially believed the suitcases being carried across the border into Mexico were empty, these movements were likely part of a broader logistical cycle to maintain the tunnel's operational security.

Who managed the Tijuana end of the operation?

While the U.S. government has charged Gregorio Epifanio Hernandez Lopez, Jose Jimenez, Brandon Escalante Sandoval, and Antonio Cortez, several critical questions remain. the source material does not identify which specific Mexican cartel commissioned the construction of the 2,000-foot tunnel or who managed the logistics on the Tijuana side of the border.

Furthermore, it remains unclear if the "seven or eight employees" observed at Buy 4 Less were all complicit in the conspiracy or if some were unwitting participants in the retail front. With Hernandez Lopez facing additional charges for the conspiracy to use a cross-border tunnel, the legal proceedings may eventually reveal the broader network of suppliers and distributors fueling this pipeline.