The US Treasury Department on Wednesday announced a new round of sanctions targeting the Sinaloa Cartel, citing mounting evidence that elements of the organization are using cryptocurrencies to support fentanyl trafficking and launder drug proceeds.
Crypto to move fentanyl revenue
The Treasury noted that the Sinaloa Cartel is among the oldest and most powerful drug trafficking groups in Mexico. The United States has designated the organization as a major foreign drug trafficking organization since April 15, 2009.
According to For the agency, cartel operations include illicit fentanyl sales, which generate proceeds that must then be transported, cleaned and ultimately transferred back into the cartel network.
One of the central figures in the Treasury Department’s announcement is Armando de Jesus Ojeda Aviles, known as Ojeda Aviles, whom the United States describes as the leader of a cryptocurrency laundering network linked to the cartel’s drug trafficking operations.
The Treasury Department alleges that Ojeda-Aviles coordinated the collection of large sums of cash in the United States, money that the Treasury Department links to fentanyl and other illicit drug sales.
From there, the Treasury says it’s easier to convert those large amounts of cash into cryptocurrency. The agency’s concerns are that the resulting digital asset funds would then be diverted for cartel use in Mexico.
Ethereum addresses added to sanctions
The Treasury Department also identified Jesus Alonso Aispuro Felix, who is described as a close associate and chief money broker in the network. Aispuro Felix is responsible for brokering large transfers of pharmaceutical proceeds using cryptocurrency addresses, the Treasury Department statement says.
Another associate highlighted in the statement is Rodrigo Alarcón Palomares, who the Treasury Department alleges facilitated the collection of funds in the United States on behalf of the network.
The agency also notes a legal development related to Alarcón Palomares: In April 2024, a federal grand jury in the US District Court for the District of Colorado returned an indictment against him on three counts of laundering drug proceeds through cryptocurrency.
As part of the sanctions measures, the Treasury Department said the list of additions includes six Ethereum network addresses. Five of those addresses are linked to Ojeda Aviles, the agency added.
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