‘No longer the hunters, you're the hunted': US indicts Sinaloa Cartel leaders on narco-terrorism charges
Representative image (Picture credit: ICE)
Two top leaders of a violent faction within Mexico's
Sinaloa Cartel
have been indicted on unprecedented
narco-terrorism
charges after allegedly trafficking massive amounts of fentanyl into the United States.
Pedro Inzunza Noriega
and his son, Pedro Inzunza Coronel, are now facing terrorism-related offences in a federal case unsealed on Tuesday, as announced by US attorney Adam Gordon for the Southern District of California.
The pair are accused of leading 'one of the largest and most sophisticated fentanyl production networks in the world,' said Gordon, who warned cartel leaders during a press briefing, 'You are no longer the hunters. You are the hunted.'
The indictment is the first by the department of justice's newly formed Narco-Terrorism Unit and follows the Trump administration's designation of the Sinaloa Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in February, under Executive Order 14157.
According to the news agency Associated Press, this is a rare move as such labels are typically reserved for politically motivated terrorist groups.
The father-son duo, along with five other leaders of the
Beltrán Leyva Organization
(BLO), a powerful offshoot of the Sinaloa Cartel, have been charged with narco-terrorism, providing material support to terrorism,
drug trafficking
, and money laundering.
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The BLO has long been known for its brutal tactics including kidnappings, torture and murders, and operates with violent impunity across Mexico and Central America, including Tijuana.
Federal officials, citing court documents, allege the Inzunzas trafficked 'tens of thousands of kilograms of fentanyl' into the US.
On December 3, 2024, Mexican law enforcement seized more than 1.65 tons of fentanyl from locations in Sinaloa tied to the duo, reportedly the largest fentanyl seizure globally, according to ICE.
'These charges highlight the unwavering efforts of transnational criminal organizations like the Sinaloa Cartel to flood our communities with deadly drugs,' said Shawn Gibson,
ICE HSI
's San Diego special agent in charge.
The case stems from 'Operation Take Back America,' a nationwide DOJ initiative to dismantle cartels and
transnational crime
.
US attorney general Pamela Bondi declared, 'Their days of brutalizing the American people without consequence are over, we will seek life in prison for these terrorists.'
FBI San Diego's acting special agent in charge Houtan Moshrefi added that the cartel's activities 'not only destroy lives and communities, but also threaten our national security.'
Other indicted cartel leaders include Fausto Isidro Meza Flores ('Chapo Isidro'), Oscar Manuel Gastelum Iribe ('El Musico'), and Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar ('El Chapito'). All remain fugitives.
Pedro Inzunza Noriega, also known as 'Sagitario,' reportedly operates from Los Mochis, Sinaloa, and is paralysed following a past attack by rival cartel members, as per AP.
The charges carry penalties ranging from 20 years to life imprisonment, including multimillion-dollar fines. The case is being prosecuted by assistant US attorneys Joshua Mellor and Matthew Sutton.
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