Treasury Sanctions Northeast Cartel Financial Network in Largest Action to Date, Targeting Racing, Trucking, Construction and Energy Firms
The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on October 13 sanctioned four individuals and 11 entities linked to Mexico's Northeast Cartel (Cártel del Noreste, or CDN), with the sanctioned businesses spanning horse racing, construction, trucking and energy. Treasury said it was the largest action to date against the cartel's financial network.
“This is the largest action to date against CDN's financial machinery, and the Trump Administration will continue to use every tool at our disposal against cartel terrorists,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.
Those sanctioned include Pablo Cesar Guajardo Alvarez, also known as “Takia,” Gamaliel Garza Garcia, his son and another family member, according to Treasury's list. Sanctioned entities include Guajardo's horse-racing venue, Club Hípico La Molienda. Treasury said a truck registered to the sanctioned Tamex trucking company was seized in Laredo, Texas, in October 2024 as it entered the United States from Mexico, with 52 kilograms of cocaine concealed inside a brake drum.
Treasury highlighted the cartel's use of horse racing to launder money. Between 2008 and 2012, associates of Los Zetas, CDN's predecessor, spent more than $16 million on U.S. quarter horse racing through front companies and laundered more than $22 million in drug proceeds; U.S. authorities seized 455 horses and several participants were convicted. Treasury said Guajardo is continuing the practice in Mexico.
CDN is headquartered in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, and shares its origins with Los Zetas. U.S. officials link it to trafficking in fentanyl, crystal methamphetamine, heroin, marijuana and cocaine, as well as human smuggling and extortion. In February 2025, the State Department designated CDN as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist. Treasury said the designations were made under Executive Order 14059 and Executive Order 13224, as amended; all property of those sanctioned that is in the United States or controlled by U.S. persons is blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from transacting with them. (Based on the U.S. Treasury Department announcement and Reuters reporting)
Source: 美国财政部、路透社
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 美国财政部大楼。颐园居 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，维基共享资源
