Washington – Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned a Mexico-based money launderer and China-based members of a money laundering organization with criminal links to the Sinaloa Cartel as part of ongoing efforts to disrupt the flow of illicit narcotics into the United States. This action is the result of the U.S. government’s ongoing efforts, in cooperation with the Mexican government, to disrupt the trafficking of fentanyl and save lives – a priority under the President’s Unity Agenda. Today’s action furthers efforts by Treasury’s Counter-Fentanyl Strike Force, which leverages Treasury’s unique expertise and capabilities to disrupt the illicit financial networks relied upon by the cartels.
“Combatting the threat posed by Money Laundering Organizations in China is a key priority of the Treasury Department, and today we are taking action to cut off the financial flows of major money launderers who are powering the trafficking of fentanyl and other illicit drugs to the United States,” said Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo. “Through our Counter-Fentanyl Strike Force, we will continue leveraging Treasury’s unique capabilities to disrupt the illicit fentanyl and drug trafficking trade that claims the lives of thousands of Americans each year.”
This action was coordinated closely with the Government of Mexico, including La Unidad de Inteligencia Financiera (UIF), and reflects the close partnership between our countries in disrupting funding that underpins the flow of fentanyl and its precursors into the United States.
In November 2023, President Biden and President Xi Jinping announced the resumption of bilateral cooperation between the United States and China to combat illicit drug manufacturing and trafficking, including synthetic drugs like fentanyl. The United States is working with Chinese authorities to target illicit financing networks, including those linked to the fentanyl trade. As reiterated during Secretary Yellen’s recent trip to China, Treasury is furthering its bilateral cooperation with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) on countering money laundering and other illicit finance issues. Secretary Yellen also raised the issue of illicit fentanyl in her meetings in Mexico City in December 2023, where Treasury and Mexican authorities committed to enhance information sharing on this illicit finance threat.