US Sanctions 8 Companies Related To Mexican Drug Cartel - Treasury Department

The United States imposed new sanctions against eight Mexican companies related to a drug cartel, the Treasury Department announced on Thursday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd March, 2023) The United States imposed new sanctions against eight Mexican companies related to a drug cartel, the Treasury Department announced on Thursday.

"Today, the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned eight Mexican companies linked to timeshare fraud on behalf of the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG). CJNG is a violent Mexico-based organization that traffics a significant proportion of the illicit fentanyl and other deadly drugs that enter the United States," the statement read.

The list of designated entities includes financial and real estate companies, five of which made direct payments to CJNG members, it added.

OFAC Director Andrea Gacki described CJNG as an organization, which has consolidated territory over the past decade and added other crimes to its core activity of drug trafficking. "In tourist destinations such as Puerto Vallarta, CJNG has become heavily engaged in timeshare fraud, which often targets US citizens," Gacki said.

In 2015, the United States sanctioned CJNG pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act) for playing a significant role in international narcotics trafficking.