US sanctions Mexico cartel members, including rapper El Makabelico

Treasury aims to disrupt Cartel del Noreste’s enactment and fiscal networks tied to unit and cause trafficking.

The US Department of the Treasury has announced sanctions connected assets of 4 individuals that it linked to Mexico-based Cartel del Noreste, including the fashionable hip-hop creator El Makabelico.

The sanctions people 3 “high-ranking members” of Cartel del Noreste (Northeast Cartel), which splintered disconnected from Los Zetas, arsenic good arsenic an alleged “prominent associate” of the group, Ricardo Hernandez, a 34-year-old instrumentalist known arsenic El Makabelico who has millions of followers connected societal media.

The Treasury said El Makabelico’s concerts and events are utilized to launder wealth connected behalf of the organisation, “with 50 percent of his royalties from streaming platforms going straight to the group.”

The Treasury identified the 3 different individuals arsenic Abdon Rodriguez, Antonio Romero, and Francisco Esqueda.

Washington said the sanctioned individuals person played a captious relation successful the cartel’s activities, including cause trafficking, extortion, and wealth laundering.

The Treasury said it had antecedently sanctioned 2 “high-ranking members” of the cartel successful May. The cartel was among those that President Donald Trump’s medication successful February designated arsenic “global violent organisations”.

“The Treasury Department volition proceed to beryllium relentless successful its effort to enactment America First by targeting violent cause cartels. These cartels poison Americans with fentanyl and behaviour quality smuggling operations on our southwest border,” said US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent successful a connection by the Treasury Department.

“Treasury, successful adjacent coordination with our instrumentality enforcement partners, is committed to a full-frontal battle connected the cartels, targeting the enactment and gross streams that alteration their horrific crimes.”

The Cartel del Noreste is considered 1 of Mexico’s astir convulsive cause trafficking organisations and wields important power on the US-Mexico border, peculiarly successful Laredo, Texas, the Treasury said.

DEL Records, which Hernandez lists arsenic his statement connected societal media, did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies