Whack-a-mole: Thanksgiving-Day Drug Tunnel Signals New Cartel In Town

Damn moles! We keeping wacking them and they just go on digging.

Thanksgiving-Day Drug Tunnel Signals New Cartel In Town : NPR: "Federal investigators believe both underground passageways (the first was discovered Nov. 2) were under the control of the Sinaloa Cartel, which is run by Joaquin 'Chapo' Guzman, the world's most wanted drug lord.

What's important is that the Tijuana smuggling corridor has traditionally been controlled by the Tijuana Cartel, which is run by the Arellano Felix family. The recent tunnel discoveries confirm that the Sinaloans have expanded their turf — by brutality and negotiation — and now have a solid foothold in Tijuana, says David Shirk, director of the Trans-Border Institute of the University of San Diego.

'The tunnel itself is not demonstrating any new characteristics — it's big, it's loaded with marijuana, and we've seen that before,' Shirk says. 'But what we haven't seen before this close to the Tijuana corridor is a Sinaloa operation of this magnitude.'

'The more we have tried to fortify and beef up border security, the more we have driven cartels underground, or out into the ocean, or more ingenious, clandestine methods of moving products across the border,' says Shirk.

The victory celebration among U.S. cops may be short-lived. If the past is a guide, Mexican drug smugglers will simply start digging new tunnels." Nov. 29, 2010