The United States imposes sanctions on the fourth chapito, Mexican companies for drug trafficking

File image by Joaquín Guzmán López.ICE

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury announced on Tuesday the imposition of sanctions on Joaquín Guzmán López, son of Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán Loera and fourth member of the Chapitos, as well as three members of the Sinaloa Cartel and two entities based in Mexico. Those sanctioned are part of a Sinaloa Cartel network overseen by Los Chapitos and responsible for a significant portion of the illicit trafficking of fentanyl and other deadly drugs into the United States, according to the Treasury.

"Today's action continues to disrupt key nodes of the global illicit fentanyl enterprise, including producers, suppliers, and transporters," said Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson. "The Treasury, in close coordination with the Government of Mexico and U.S. law enforcement, will continue to leverage our authorities to isolate and disrupt the operations of Los Chapitos and the Sinaloa Cartel at every juncture."

The other three Chapitos were already sanctioned. US authorities are now sanctioning Joaquín Guzmán López because they consider him involved in the management of superlaboratories and in the trafficking of illicit drugs to the United States. He was first indicted on federal drug trafficking charges in 2018 by the Justice Department's Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Section (NDDS).

The other three individuals now sanctioned are Raymundo Pérez Uribe, for running a network of suppliers used by the Sinaloa cartel to obtain precursor chemicals for the manufacture of illicit drugs; Saul Paez Lopez, involved in coordinating illicit drug shipments for his first cousins, Ovidio and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, and Mario Esteban Ogazon Sedano, who buys illicit precursor chemicals and runs illegal drug labs on behalf of the Sinaloa cartel, according to US authorities.

In addition, Treasury has sanctioned Sumilab, a chemical and laboratory equipment company based in Culiacán, Sinaloa, for its involvement in supplying and shipping precursor chemicals to and members of the Sinaloa Cartel, and Urbanización, Inmobiliaria y Construcción de Obras, a Sinaloa-based Mario Esteban Ogazón Sedano real estate company.

Founded in the 1980s, the Sinaloa cartel initially operated as an alliance of Mexico's most powerful drug traffickers. In the early 2000s, Ismael El Mayo Zambada García and Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán Loera consolidated their power, leading the Sinaloa cartel to become one of Mexico's largest and best-known drug trafficking organizations. The Sinaloa Cartel controls drug trafficking activity in key regions of Mexico, especially along the Pacific coast. Through these strategic points, it introduces into the United States quantities of illicit drugs, such as fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamine in large quantities, says the Treasury.

Following El Chapo's arrest, extradition and subsequent conviction in U.S. federal court, four of his sons have collectively sought to continue their father's legacy of drug trafficking and his leadership role in the Sinaloa cartel. Commonly known as Los Chapitos or Los Menores, brothers Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar and Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar, along with their half-brothers Ovidio Guzman Lopez and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, led a powerful faction of the Sinaloa cartel.

The four members of Los Chapitos are charged with federal drug trafficking offenses in one or more U.S. jurisdictions. While Ovidio Guzmán López was captured in Mexico in January of this year, Joaquín Guzmán López and the Guzmán Salazar brothers remain at large. The U.S. State Department is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Joaquin Guzman Lopez and Ovidio Guzman Lopez, and up to $10 million for Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar and Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar.

As a result of the sanctions, all property and interests in property of designated persons and entities that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons must be blocked and reported to OFAC. The regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within the United States that involve property or interests in property of designated or blocked persons. The action has been closely coordinated with Mexico's government, including its Financial Intelligence Unit, according to the Treasury.

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