The U.S. Department of the Treasury recently announced sanctions for agents that supplied precursor chemicals to Mexican drug cartels that would use them to produce illicit fentanyl intended for U.S. markets.
Two organizations in the People's Republic of China (PRC) and five individuals with addresses in the PRC and Guatemala have been designated by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for providing precursor chemicals to Mexican drug cartels used to produce supplies of fentanyl destined for the U.S., a recent Treasury press release said.
“Illicit fentanyl is responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans each year,” Brian E. Nelson, under secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, said in the release. “Treasury, as part of the whole-of-government effort to respond to this crisis, will continue to vigorously apply our tools to prevent the transfer of precursor chemicals and machinery necessary to produce this drug.”
As a result of engaging in or attempting to engage in activities or transactions that have materially contributed to or pose a significant risk of materially contributing to the international proliferation of illicit drugs or their means of production, Wuhan Shuokang Biological Technology Co. Ltd. (WSBT) and Yao Huatao were designated by OFAC under Executive Order (E.O.) 14059. Yao, a citizen of the PRC, is the sole proprietor of the PRC-based chemical company WSBT, which is in charge of managing sales of chemicals used to make fentanyl precursors. Additionally, WSBT was designated by OFAC due to Yao directly or indirectly owning, controlling, directing or acting for or on behalf of WSBT.
Three more PRC nationals were penalized by OFAC for their connections to WSBT. In addition to negotiating and facilitating the sale of fentanyl precursor chemicals on behalf of WSBT, Wu Yaqin and Wu Yonghao, sales agents of WSBT, also offered information on effective preparation techniques for synthesizing illegal fentanyl. A cryptocurrency wallet that belongs to WSBT associate Wang Hongfei has been utilized to collect bitcoin payments for narcotics activities.
Also designated by E.O. 14059 was Ana Gabriela Rubio Zea (Rubio Zea), a Guatemala-based broker, for allegedly buying fentanyl precursor chemicals on behalf of Mexico-based drug traffickers.
The U.S. Department of State’s Narcotics Reward Program has announced a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Yao, Wu, Yonghao and Zea. Information can be submitted via email to ChapitosTips@dea.gov and via Whatsapp at 1-202-743-1066.
