The US included in the Clinton list leaders of the Gulf Clan who are linked to human trafficking and fentanyl

According to US authorities, these five leaders of the Gulf Clan, of Colombian nationality and with two companies in Mexico, work together with the Sinaloa Cartel. The US Treasury Department assured that those accused are part of one of the most influential organizations in the illicit drug trade, in addition to having control of the territory to combat fentanyl trafficking and human trafficking through the Darien Jungle.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Treasury Department said on Tuesday, September 24, that five leaders of the armed group Clan del Golfo will immediately enter the Clinton list, “The Treasury will continue to be relentless in interrupting the financing that fuels the illicit trafficking of fentanyl.“

In conclusion, the sanctions affect: José Miguel Demoya Hernández, alias “Chirimoya”, accused by a US federal court in August 2023 of cocaine trafficking, is currently a fugitive from US justice and is also wanted by the Colombian Government for his participation in the Clan del Golfo, Alexander Celis Durango is added to Washington’s blacklist, due to his position as the top financial chief of the Clan del Golfo and was accused in March 2021 by the US federal court of cocaine trafficking, he was arrested by Colombian authorities in 2023 and remains pending extradition to the US, another of those sanctioned is José Gonzalo Sánchez Sánchez, alias “Gonzalito”, the second in command in the Clan del Golfo, they have been key pieces in the operation, handling both drug trafficking and control of migration routes in Darién. Also added to the list are José Emilson Córdoba Quinto and Wilder de Jesús Alcaraz Morales for their responsibility in controlling the flow of the migratory wave throughout the Darién Jungle, that is, transporting various drugs in the territory controlled by the criminal organization.

The United States sanctioned the company Nieves y Paletas, a business that sells ice cream in Culiacán, in the state of Sinaloa, and the surrounding municipalities, such as Pueblos Unidos and Tacuichamona Mexico.

The Biden Administration supposedly uses “drug profits, including the illicit sale of fentanyl.”

Finally, Farmacia and Mini Súper Trinidad are included on the list for being owned by drug trafficker José Arnoldo Morgan Huerta, alias “Chachio,” sanctioned in November 2023 for being in charge of the Sinaloa Cartel’s operations in Nogales, Mexico.

In addition, Morgan Huerta, who also oversees drug trafficking from Mexico to the United States, was charged by the US court in April 2021 with drug trafficking, including fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine. This dangerous criminal remains a fugitive from justice.

Would it affect peace negotiations with the government of Gustavo Petro?

In a critical context in which the Colombian government under Gustavo Petro had identified some of these leaders as interlocutors in the peace dialogue process with the Gulf Clan.

Image United States Department of the Treasury