Three top members of the Sinaloa Cartel, Alfonso Arzate, Rene Arzate, and Rafael Felix, have been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department for trafficking drugs, including fentanyl, into America. The Arzate siblings, who run the cartel’s operations in Tijuana and other cities, are also accused of participating in kidnappings and murders. The sanctions block any assets the men may have in the United States and prohibit U.S. citizens from having any dealings with them. Felix and other cartel members escaped from jail in 2017 and remain at large. Amarachi reported
The Arzate siblings, who are currently on the run, are believed to be in charge of the drug cartel’s operations in Tijuana and nearby cities, where they are responsible for smuggling drugs, including the potent synthetic opioid fentanyl, into the United States.
The US Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on three high-ranking members of the Sinaloa Cartel for their involvement in drug trafficking, specifically the transportation of fentanyl into America. Alfonso Arzate, his brother Rene Arzate, and Rafael Felix are said to oversee strategic areas for the transnational criminal organization, which was co-founded by notorious drug lord Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán.
These sanctions, implemented on August 9, freeze any assets that the three individuals might have in the US. Additionally, US citizens are prohibited from engaging in any business or transactions with them.
Allegedly, the Arzate siblings are responsible for managing the cartel’s activities in Tijuana and neighboring cities, orchestrating the importation of various narcotics, including the highly potent synthetic opioid fentanyl, into the United States.
According to the Treasury Department, both Alfonso Arzate and Rene Arzate have also been involved in kidnappings and murders on behalf of the notorious cartel. They were separately indicted for drug trafficking charges by the US District Court for the Southern District of California in July 2014.
Rafael Felix, also known as “The Anthrax Monkey,” earned this nickname during his time as a hitman for the Los Anthrax, an enforcement unit for the Sinaloa Cartel. After the arrest of gang leader Rodrigo “Chino Anthrax” Arechiga in 2013, Felix assumed a senior role within the organization.
He, too, was indicted for drug trafficking charges by the US District Court for the Southern District of California in July 2014 and was subsequently apprehended by Mexican authorities in November 2014.
However, Felix and other members of the Sinaloa Cartel managed to escape from a jail in Culiacán, Sinaloa in 2017 and are currently evading capture..
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