US sanctions entities linked to Mexican cartel for fentanyl trafficking

The US Treasury Department announced Tuesday that it imposed sanctions on multiple entities linked to a Mexican cartel for fentanyl trafficking.

Those sanctioned include two Mexican members of Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG) and two Mexican companies.

CJNG, a Mexico-based criminal organization, is one of the largest producers and traffickers of illicit fentanyl to the US, the agency said in a statement.

"Over the past month, the Biden-Harris administration has imposed five new rounds of sanctions on transnational criminal organizations, including traffickers and revenue-generating schemes fueling the flood of fentanyl and other drugs into the United States by CJNG and other cartels," said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson.

"Building on our strong partnerships across the U.S. government and with our counterparts in Mexico, we will continue to act against the financial flows of CJNG and other criminal organizations that harm Americans through the illicit drug trade," he added.

Among the individuals, Juan Carlos Banuelos Ramirez is a CJNG cell leader who has worked to send methamphetamine and fentanyl to the US, while Gerardo Rivera Ibarra, another leader of a CJNG cell, is capable of supplying fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine to the US, said the agency.

The companies sanctioned include Fornely Lab S.A. de C.V., which is engaged in wholesale trade, for being owned, controlled or directed by Rivera, and Inmobiliaria Universal Deja Vu S.A. de C.V., which is engaged in real estate activities, for being owned, controlled or directed by Banuelos, it added.