OTAY MESA, CALIFORNIA — Federal authorities arrested four individuals and seized more than a ton of cocaine after discovering a 2,000-foot cross-border tunnel beneath a fake Buy 4 Less store in Otay Mesa, California, on May 29, 2025. The tunnel connected a warehouse near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in San Diego to Tijuana, Mexico, and was used to traffic over $45 million worth of cocaine.
The U.S. Homeland Security Investigations Tunnel Task Force had been surveilling the purported Buy 4 Less store since December 2024. During the investigation, agents observed minimal customer foot traffic and noted employees carrying apparently empty suitcases across the border into Tijuana by car or on foot, according to the Department of Justice.
On May 29, investigators moved in after spotting large, heavy items being loaded into a white van at the store. A man on a bicycle reportedly retrieved a key from a hidden spot near the van’s gas cap and drove it in tandem with another van. A large truck then arrived, and deep freezers filled with packages were transferred between the vehicles. San Diego County sheriff’s deputies intervened and halted the operation.
Agents also observed a second truck being loaded at the Buy 4 Less location; it was stopped shortly after leaving the parking lot. In total, more than 2,269 pounds of cocaine were recovered from three vehicles pulled over during the bust.
With a warrant, federal agents searched the store and found the tunnel entrance concealed under the floor of a storage room. The passage extended over 1,000 feet to the U.S.-Mexico border at depths reaching 55 feet, then continued another 800 feet into Mexico, according to the Justice Department.
Gregorio Epifanio Hernandez Lopez, 29, and Jose Jimenez, 32, both of San Diego, along with Antonio Cortez, 18, and Brandon Escalante Sandoval, 26, both of Mexico, were arrested and charged with distribution of a controlled substance. Hernandez Lopez also faces additional charges related to constructing and using an unauthorized tunnel and importing a controlled substance. All four face a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted.
“For these defendants, it wasn't a light at the end of the tunnel. It was lights and sirens,” U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon said in a statement. Kevin Murphy, acting special agent in charge for HSI San Diego, said, “The discovery and dismantlement of this sophisticated cross-border tunnel, along with the seizure of more than a ton of cocaine, underscore the commitment and collaboration of Homeland Security Investigations and our Homeland Security Task Force partners.”