The Mexican Ministry of Defense is asking for a US $150 million budget to build 13 “Counter-narcotics Strategic Checkpoints”.
The Army (project number 10071170002) plans to install 13 company-sized permanent checkpoints with non-intrusive X-Ray and Gamma-Ray inspection facilities.
Each checkpoint will have 5 inspection lanes for small vehicles and another 5 for larger ones, such as cargo trucks or buses. According to the Army it will take no more than 5 minutes to effectively scan every vehicle.
In 2009 the Ministry of Defense inaugurated the Querobabi Counter-narcotics and Arms-smuggling checkpoint in the state of Sonora, northwestern Mexico.
Querobabi is certainly the most advanced military checkpoint in the country and will serve as a model for the new project.
Click here to access a video of Querobabi (in Spanish).
Addendum: Although I think that counter-narcotics checkpoints do help reduce drug trafficking, I believe that the US $150 millions should be allocated elsewhere (say Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Platoon-sized Tactical Radios or any kind of intelligence-oriented assets).
Drug Trafficking Organizations would simply find another way to avoid a permanent checkpoint…wouldn’t they?
PS. MXSECURITY decided not to publish the location of the project’s new facilities.
Totaly agree, Mexican Army and PFP should tray to invest in partable equipment to transform every permanent check poin on a mobil base, with protable x rays, comunicaton and inteligence equipment