IANS | 10 Aug, 2017
The US Treasury Department
announced on Wednesday that it has slapped sanctions on Mexican drug
kingpin Raul Flores Hernandez and his network.
Apart from
Hernandez and his Flores Drug Trafficking Organization, the US also put
21 Mexican nationals and 42 entities on the sanctions list as they were
believed to be in relation to the Guadalajara-based drug trafficking
cartel, said the treasury in a statement, Xinhua reported.
The
action marks the largest single Kingpin Act action against a Mexican
drug cartel network that the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control
(OFAC) has designated.
The sanctions would freeze any assets
that a blacklisted person or entity holds under US jurisdiction and ban
any US individuals or companies from making business deals with them.
The designation was part of a larger collaborative effort between the US and Mexican government agencies.
"This
major joint action reflects the US government's close cooperation with
our law enforcement partners in Mexico to stop the illegal flow of
narcotics," said OFAC Director John Smith in the statement.
Hernandez
has operated for decades due to his longstanding relationships with
other drug cartels and his use of financial front persons to mask his
investments of illegal drug proceeds, Smith noted.
