MEXICO · SECURITY
Key Facts
- The country Mexico, the United States’ largest trading partner, is led by President Claudia Sheinbaum of the left-wing Morena party.
- What happened A San Diego grand jury indicted Luis Manuel Hernández Victoria, 60, on Thursday 29 October 2026.
- The tunnel It ran about 1,933 feet (589 metres) from Tijuana, Mexico, to a San Diego store.
- The seizure Agents found more than one ton of cocaine, worth over US$45 million.
- Power Index Mexico ranks 2nd of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 71.4 points (October 2026 edition).
A US federal grand jury in San Diego has charged a Mexican engineer known as “El Ingeniero” (the Engineer) with helping a drug cartel that Washington treats as a terrorist group. The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California says Luis Manuel Hernández Victoria, 60, of Guadalajara, designed and built a border tunnel for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, known as CJNG.
For US readers, the case matters because it is a terrorism-support charge, not only a drug charge, and because the tunnel ended at a business near the Otay Mesa border crossing. Our guide to Mexico and the United States explains how security now shapes the whole relationship.
What Happened
The grand jury indicted Hernández Victoria on Thursday 29 October 2026 on four counts. They are providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, conspiring to build or finance a cross-border tunnel, conspiring to use the tunnel to import drugs, and conspiring to import controlled substances.
He is the seventh person charged in the tunnel case. The US Attorney’s Office says Mexican authorities arrested him in the western state of Jalisco on 15 October 2026, and an indictment is a formal accusation, not proof of guilt.
The Tunnel Under the Border
US agents found the passage on 29 May 2026 inside a business called “Buy 4 Less” on Roll Drive in San Diego, close to the Otay Mesa port of entry. Prosecutors say it ran about 1,933 feet (589 metres) from Tijuana, lay about 55 feet underground and was 4.5 feet high.
It had reinforced walls, a rail system, ventilation and electric power. Agents seized more than one ton of cocaine with an estimated value above US$45 million.
Why the Terrorism Charge Matters
The United States designated CJNG a foreign terrorist organization on 20 February 2025, a legal label that also covers cartels it considers threats to US security. Anyone who knowingly gives such a group money, services or expertise can be charged with material support, which prosecutors can use against builders, financiers and suppliers, not only gunmen.
The two drug-import counts carry a maximum sentence of life in prison, according to the US Attorney’s Office. The material-support and tunnel-building counts carry up to 20 years each.
In Plain English
CJNG: the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, a Mexican criminal group based in the state of Jalisco. It is one of the country’s best-known drug organizations.
US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of California: the federal prosecutors for San Diego and Imperial counties. They brought the case.
Material support: a US crime that applies when someone helps a designated terrorist group, even without taking part in violence. It is punished far more heavily than a plain smuggling charge.
What It Means for You
If you cross the border at San Ysidro or Otay Mesa, nothing changes for you today, since the tunnel was found and shut in May. The case does show that US prosecutors now treat cartel logistics as a terrorism matter, which can make cross-border business with unknown partners riskier.
Companies that ship goods through Tijuana may face more questions about the warehouses and storefronts they use near the line. Our report on Mexico’s homicide numbers shows why cartel violence stays high on the agenda in both capitals.
What Is Not Known
It is not known whether Mexico will hand Hernández Victoria to the United States or try him at home, or when he might appear before a US judge. The public case documents do not say who financed the tunnel or how many loads crossed before it was found.
The status of the other six defendants was not detailed in the announcement. Mexican authorities announced the arrest in Zapopan, Jalisco, on 16 October, as we reported at the time, and no handover to US courts has been announced.
More: Mexico news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who Is “El Ingeniero” in the San Diego Tunnel Case?
He is Luis Manuel Hernández Victoria, 60, of Guadalajara, Mexico. A US grand jury indicted him on Thursday 29 October 2026 for allegedly designing and building the tunnel for the CJNG cartel.
How Long Was the Tunnel and What Was Found?
It ran about 1,933 feet (589 metres) from Tijuana to a San Diego store, 55 feet underground. Agents seized more than one ton of cocaine worth over US$45 million.
What Could He Face if Convicted?
The two drug-import counts carry up to life in prison, and the other two counts up to 20 years each. An indictment is only an accusation, and he is presumed innocent until a court decides.
Sources: US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of California, press release on the indictment of Luis Manuel Hernández Victoria, 29 October 2026; US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of California, tunnel case records, 29 May to 29 October 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error