Border guards detected ground vibrations indicating potential digging operations originating from the Belarusian side.
Polish specialists equipped with underground detection gear were brought in to assist with the search operation. After drilling a control hole, teams located a tunnel that had not yet breached the surface on Lithuanian territory.
The tunnel measures approximately one meter in diameter and runs at a depth of roughly 1.5 meters.
The Lithuanian Border Guard Service noted that similar tunnels were earlier uncovered in both Lithuania and Poland, where they were utilized for smuggling goods and trafficking individuals across the border from Belarus.
On Dec. 12, 2025, Polish border guards discovered an underground tunnel on the border with Belarus, through which over 180 foreign nationals illegally entered the country.
Border Guard spokesperson Andrzej Jóźwiak reported that the operation involved a professionally engineered tunnel approximately 1.5 meters high — allowing individuals to move freely — and several dozen meters long.
"As a result of immediate measures taken, over 130 individuals have been detained so far, while the search for the remaining persons guilty of illegal border crossing continues," Jóźwiak stated.
Polish border guards clarified that those detained were primarily citizens of Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. Two additional detainees were drivers who arrived to transport the migrants to Western Europe: a 69-year-old Polish citizen and a 49-year-old Lithuanian national.
On Oct. 16, Podlaskie border guards located a tunnel beneath the border barrier on the Belarusian border. The tunnel originated in Belarusian territory and extended nearly to Poland, terminating approximately 20 meters from the border line.