The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions Wednesday on more than a dozen individuals, a Mexican restaurant, and a security firm linked to the Sinaloa cartel's fentanyl trafficking operations, escalating the Trump administration's financial warfare against networks fueling America's deadliest drug crisis.
Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control targeted Jesus Gonzalez Penuelas, a fugitive known as Chuy Gonzalez, who is alleged to be involved in trafficking narcotics into the U.S. and laundering funds for the cartel. The State Department has been offering a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest since 2024.
Financial Networks Disrupted
The sanctions also hit Armando de Jesus Ojeda Aviles, who allegedly helps launder the proceeds of fentanyl and other drugs on behalf of the cartel. A restaurant in Chihuahua, called Gorditas Chiwas, controlled by sanctioned businessman Alfredo Orozco Romero, was also targeted in the action.
The sanctions cut them off from the U.S. banking system, cut off their ability to work with Americans and block their U.S. assets. It was unclear how embedded the sanctioned individuals and firms are in the U.S. financial system.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement that Treasury "will continue to target terrorist cartels and their fentanyl trafficking networks to protect our communities and Keep America Safe."
The Fentanyl Crisis
Fentanyl, a powerful opioid, is the deadliest drug in the U.S. today. A tiny amount, 2 milligrams, ingested into the body can be fatal. Drug overdose deaths increased approximately 520% from 1999 to 2023, though deaths are beginning to decline, by nearly 3% from 2022 to 2023, according to the latest CDC data.
Mexico and China are the primary sources for fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances trafficked directly into the U.S., according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. Nearly all the precursor chemicals needed to make fentanyl come from China, and the companies that make the precursors routinely use fake return addresses and mislabel the products to avoid being caught by law enforcement.
Coordinated Enforcement Action
President Donald Trump has repeatedly offered to send the U.S. military after the cartels, and his administration designated the Sinaloa cartel as a terrorist group in 2025. The Government of Mexico's financial intelligence unit worked with Treasury and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to identify targets for Wednesday's sanctions.
The coordinated action reflects growing bilateral cooperation on targeting cartel financial infrastructure, utilizing tools typically reserved for countering terrorist organizations. The terrorist designation has enabled Treasury to deploy more aggressive sanctions authorities against cartel networks.
Why This Matters:
The sanctions represent a critical escalation in using financial tools to combat cartels that have killed hundreds of thousands of Americans through fentanyl trafficking. With overdose deaths having surged 520% over two decades, disrupting the financial networks that enable cartel operations strikes at the economic incentives driving the crisis. The inclusion of seemingly legitimate businesses like restaurants demonstrates how deeply cartel money penetrates the legitimate economy, requiring aggressive enforcement to separate criminal enterprises from lawful commerce. The cooperation between U.S. and Mexican authorities on financial intelligence suggests a more sustainable approach than military intervention, leveraging market mechanisms and rule of law to impose costs on criminal networks without the fiscal and security risks of direct military engagement.