Five Mexican nationals with ties to the Gulf Cartel (CDG) have been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department for allegedly engaging in illegal fishing in U.S. waters and using their illicit maritime operations to traffic drugs and smuggle people into the United States.
The sanctioned individuals include Ismael Guerra Salinas, known as "El Mayelo"; Omar Guerra Salinas, "El Samorano"; Francisco Javier Sierra Angulo, "El Borrado"; Raúl Decuir García, "La Burra"; and Ildelfonso Carrillo Sapien, "El Chivo."
"Today's action highlights how transnational criminal organizations like the Gulf Cartel rely on a variety of illicit schemes like fishing to fund their operations, along with narcotics trafficking and human smuggling," said Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley T. Smith.
As a result of the sanctions, all property and assets owned by the sanctioned individuals within the United States will remain frozen, per a Treasury Department press release. Any businesses or entities that are at least 50% owned by these individuals are also included in the freeze. Furthermore, Americans and U.S.-based entities have been prohibited from conducting business or financial transactions with the sanctioned cartel members or entities related to them.
While "illegal fishing" is not a crime typically associated with drug cartels, authorities revealed the Gulf Cartel "earns millions a year" in the illicit trade of red snapper and sharks in Playa Bagdad–a beach along the U.S.-Mexico border, across South Padre Island and south of the Rio Grande.
According to the Treasury Department, Mexican fishermen sometimes cross into U.S. waters–as these species are more abundant in the north part of the Gulf Coast–and then sell the fish to U.S. buyers. The agency noted that the cartel's boats are also used to "smuggle drugs and migrants" into the United States.
Authorities identified "El Mayelo" and "El Samorano" as supervisors of illegal fishing operations for the Gulf Cartel; both individuals were also linked to human smuggling across the Rio Grande. "El Borrado" was named as the current leader of the criminal organization in the border town of Matamoros, Tamaulipas. As for "La Burra" and "El Chivo," both men were identified as owners of boat camps that enable the Gulf Cartel to charge fishermen wanting to cross into U.S. waters.
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