The United States has imposed sanctoins on four Sinaloa Cartel members and two Mexico-based entities involved in mass trafficking of illicit fentanyl, methamphetamine and other deadly drugs into the country.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated JoaquÍn Guzmán Lopez, a leader in the Sinaloa cartel and one of drug kingpin El Chapo’s sons, as well as three Sinaloa Cartel members – Saúl Páez López, Raymundo Pérez Uribe, and Mario Esteban Ogazon Sedano.
The Mexico-based firms targeted by the U.S. Treasury are Sumilab, S.A. de C.V. (Sumilab), which is a Culiacan, Sinaloa-based chemical and lab equipment company, and Sinaloa-based real estate business, Urbanizacion, Inmobiliaria y Construccion de Obras, S.A. de C.V.
Sumilab was designated for its involvement in shipping precursor chemicals to Sinaloa Cartel members and associates.
Urbanizacion is owned by Mario Esteban Ogazon Sedano.
While Ovidio Guzman Lopez was captured in Mexico in January, Joaquin Guzman Lopez and the Guzman Salazar brothers remain fugitives. The U.S. Department of State offers a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest of Joaquin Guzman Lopez and Ovidio Guzman Lopez, as well as a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest of Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar and Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar.
Founded in the 1980s, the Sinaloa Cartel is one of the largest and most notorious drug trafficking organizations in Mexico. The Sinaloa Cartel controls drug trafficking activity in key regions throughout Mexico, particularly along the Pacific Coast. Using these strategic points, the cartel trafficks tons of illicit drugs, including fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine into the United States.
“Today’s action continues to disrupt key nodes of the global illicit fentanyl enterprise, including the producers, suppliers, and transporters,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson. “Treasury, in close coordination with the Government of Mexico and U.S. law enforcement, will continue to leverage our authorities to isolate and disrupt Los Chapitos and the Sinaloa Cartel’s operations at every juncture,” he added.
The production and trafficking of illicit drugs is a global health and security threat that exacerbates the U.S. opioid overdose epidemic.
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