U.S. and Mexican Authorities Have Identified Almost 250 Jalisco Cartel Operatives in the Last Decade; Less Than 20% Have Been Detained

The initials of the drug cartel "Jalisco Nueva Generacion" (CJNG) are seen in graffiti on a wall in Jalisco (Credit: Photo by ULISES RUIZ/AFP via Getty Images)

A journalistic investigation has revealed that the financial structure behind one of Mexico's most powerful criminal organizations—the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG)—has been widely identified by U.S. and Mexican authorities, yet it remains largely unprosecuted.

Using records from the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and reports from Mexico's Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena), the investigation identified 245 entities and individuals tied to the CJNG's money laundering operation. They include 87 individuals and 125 companies sanctioned by OFAC since 2015, along with 33 individuals flagged by Sedena.