US sanctions target over 50 leaders and businesses of Mexico's CJNG cartel

The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the largest ever sanction action against the Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) cartel, designating more than 50 individuals and dozens of companies across several Mexican states. The measures block the assets of the cartel’s new leader, Juan Carlos González — known as “Pelón” or “El 03” — who succeeded Rubén Oseguera Cervantes (“El Mencho”) after his February 2026 death, and impose a rewards offer of up to $5 million for information leading to his capture. The sanctions also freeze the holdings of financiers, operators, and front‑companies involved in drug trafficking, fentanyl distribution, fuel theft (huachicol), money‑laundering and other illicit activities, covering sectors such as footwear, security services, beverage production and energy logistics.

Mexico’s Treasury (SHCP) and its Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) simultaneously blocked the bank accounts of the same 55 persons and 16 entities, filing legal complaints for illicit‑funds operations and adding them to the national blocked‑persons list. The actions were coordinated with U.S. agencies including the DEA, FBI and HSI, underscoring bilateral cooperation to dismantle the cartel’s financial network.

Additional OFAC designations targeted relatives of CJNG operatives, such as family members of Audias Flores Silva (“El Jardinero”), and other high‑ranking figures like Gerardo Botello Rozález (“El Cachas”). The combined sanctions aim to cripple CJNG’s ability to fund drug and fuel trafficking, reduce its violence, and signal a broader U.S. strategy against transnational narco‑terrorist groups.