US Charges Sinaloa Cartel Leaders with Fentanyl Production, Distribution
Date
4/16/2023 2:07:40 AM
(MENAFN) The US has charged several leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel with illicitly producing fentanyl and distributing it in the country, along with entities in China that allegedly supplied the precursor chemicals to make the drug. The charges include fentanyl trafficking, weapons offenses, and money laundering, and were unsealed in the Southern District of New York, the Northern District of Illinois, and Washington, DC. The Justice Department alleges that 28 individuals associated with the cartel are involved, including four sons of notorious drug trafficker Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.
China-based suppliers who allegedly supplied fentanyl precursors to the cartel, a Guatemala-based intermediary who does the purchasing on behalf of the cartel, lab operators, leaders of the cartel's security forces, and money launderers are also being charged. Eight of the suspects are in the custody of the US's "international partners," and the US will seek their extradition. The country is planning to "work closely" with Mexico to secure the extradition of the other defendants, according to Attorney General Merrick Garland.
The US is taking action against the Sinaloa Cartel due to the devastating impact of the fentanyl epidemic on families and communities across the country. From August 2021 through August 2022, nearly 108,000 overdose deaths were reported, with roughly two-thirds of that figure due to the illicit use of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid many times stronger than heroin.
The indictment describes gruesome details of the cartel's operations, including forcing individuals to shoot up fentanyl, sometimes to the point of death, torturing and killing victims, and feeding live victims to tigers. In addition to the prosecutions launched by the Justice Department, the Treasury Department has separately announced sanctions against two China-based entities and five individuals in China and Guatemala for supplying precursors to the cartel.
Wuhan Shuokang Biological Technology and its owner, Yao Huatao, are among those sanctioned, along with three other Chinese individuals associated with the firm. Petrochemical company Suzhou Xiaoli Pharmatech is also being sanctioned for shipping 25 kilograms of N-BOC-4-Piperidone, a fentanyl precursor, to Guadalajara, Mexico. Ana Gabriela Rubio Zea, the Guatemala-based alleged fentanyl precursor broker, was also sanctioned for facilitating the Piperidone sale.
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