The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has imposed sanctions on five senior Nicaraguan government officials. These individuals lead key financial, communications, and military agencies that support the Murillo-Ortega administration’s efforts to suppress dissent in Nicaragua.
The sanctioned officials include the Director and Deputy Director of Nicaragua’s Financial Analysis Unit (UAF), the Minister of Labor, the Deputy Director General of the Nicaraguan Institute of Telecommunications and Postal Services (TELCOR), and the head of the Nicaraguan Army’s Directorate of Military Intelligence and Counterintelligence.
Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent stated: “The Murillo-Ortega dictatorship has continued its domestic and international campaign of repression and tyranny to intimidate, stifle, and undermine peaceful political opponents and dissenters. We will continue to hold the dictatorship to account and to amplify the Nicaraguan people’s aspirations for freedom and justice.”
Since 2018, there have been reports that authorities in Nicaragua have suppressed protests with violence, detained or killed political opponents without due process, targeted independent media, forced journalists into exile, and consolidated power through various measures.
In January 2025, Nicaragua’s National Assembly approved a constitutional change that increased centralization under President Ortega and Vice President Murillo. The new constitution elevated Murillo to Co-President status, reduced checks on executive power by subordinating other branches of government, removed civil protections, expanded state control over media outlets, and authorized paramilitary enforcement against opposition groups.
According to U.S. officials, laws intended for anti-money laundering (AML) and countering terrorist financing have been used by authorities as tools for political repression. The UAF is led by military officers loyal to Ortega. This agency monitors foreign funds entering Nicaragua with a focus on blocking resources destined for opposition organizations or independent civil society groups. It has also liquidated assets belonging to dissidents without legal justification.
Retired Major General Denis Membreno Rivas serves as Director of UAF while former Police Chief Commissioner Aldo Martin Saenz Ulloa is Deputy Director; both were designated under Executive Order 13851 for their roles in government since January 2007.
Labor conditions in Nicaragua have drawn criticism from international observers. A report released by the Office of the United States Trade Representative in October 2025 highlighted labor rights abuses under policies enforced by the Ministry of Labor. These practices reportedly created unfair competition conditions for workers while also affecting property interests held by religious institutions or American businesses operating in Nicaragua.
Johana Vanessa Flores Jimenez was appointed Minister of Labor in August 2025; she was sanctioned today under similar grounds as other officials named.
TELCOR acts as Nicaragua’s telecommunications regulator but is described as an instrument for surveillance under direct regime control. A law passed in 2024 granted TELCOR broad authority over private data collection and monitoring communications within Nicaragua. Reports indicate that TELCOR oversaw online harassment campaigns targeting critics.
Nahima Janett Diaz Flores leads TELCOR; she was previously sanctioned by OFAC in January 2022 for her official role since at least January 2007. Celia Margarita Reyes Ochoa has served as deputy director general since 2023.
The Directorate of Military Intelligence and Counterintelligence (DICIM) is responsible for internal security operations including monitoring protesters, journalists, human rights advocates, or retired military personnel seen as disloyal. Major General Leonel Jose Gutierrez Lopez headed DICIM for more than ten years; both he and Reyes were designated today under relevant executive orders.
As a result of these actions all property belonging to these individuals within U.S. jurisdiction is blocked; entities owned at least fifty percent by any blocked person are also subject to restrictions. Transactions involving these persons are generally prohibited unless specifically authorized by OFAC regulations or licenses.
Violations may lead to civil or criminal penalties even if unintentional; further details are available through OFAC’s published enforcement guidelines. Financial institutions engaging with designated individuals risk additional sanctions such as restrictions on correspondent accounts in U.S.-based banks.
OFAC emphasizes that its goal is not punishment but promoting behavioral change among those targeted by sanctions policies.
