Action Targets Individuals Laundering Money for Trevino Morales
WASHINGTON
– The U.S. Department of the Treasury today designated two Mexican nationals,
Jose Odilon Ramirez Perales and Ismael Lopez Guerrero, pursuant to the Foreign
Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act) for their ties to Mexico’s
violent Los Zetas drug trafficking organization. Ramirez Perales is a powerful financial
operative responsible for controlling and laundering tens of millions of
dollars in funds smuggled from the U.S. to Mexico for Los Zetas leaders Miguel
Trevino Morales and Omar Trevino Morales.
Lopez Guerrero collects illicit monies from Los Zetas operations in
Nuevo Laredo, and he sends large quantities of smuggled cash to Ramirez Perales
for safeguarding and processing in Coahuila, Mexico.
“The momentous arrest of Miguel
Trevino Morales, who was captured last week, took place in the early morning
hours with two of his closest advisors by his side, including a key accountant.
This is another clear example of the central importance of financial operatives
within the operational structure of drug cartels,” said Treasury’s Director of
the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Adam J. Szubin. “Treasury’s action
today targets the activities of two other significant financial operatives for
Los Zetas. We will continue to support
our Mexican partners to target those laundering Los Zetas’ ill-gotten
gains.”
Ramirez Perales is wanted in the
Southern District of Texas for money laundering relating to drug trafficking. Ramirez Perales and his other co-defendants
are subject to the forfeiture of approximately $20 million in the Southern
District of Texas. In October 2012,
Mexican authorities captured Ramirez Perales, and they arrested Lopez Guerrero
after a July 2012 gun battle. Lopez
Guerrero, who uses the alias Gilberto Godina Guerrero, was alleged to possess
ammunition, drugs, and currency at the time of his arrest. The arrests of these
individuals and other high level Los Zetas members such as Miguel Trevino
Morales, along with the death of former Zeta leader Heriberto Lazcano-Lazcano,
has played a vital role in weakening of the organization.
Today’s action generally prohibits
U.S. persons from engaging in any transactions with these individuals and
freezes any assets they may have under U.S. jurisdiction.
The President identified Los Zetas
as a significant foreign narcotics trafficker pursuant to the Kingpin Act in
April 2009. On July 24, 2011, the
President named Los Zetas as a significant Transnational Criminal Organization
in the Annex to Executive Order 13581 (Blocking Property of Transnational
Criminal Organizations). Additionally,
OFAC designated Los Zetas leaders Miguel and Omar Trevino Morales on July 20,
2009 and March 24, 2010, respectively.
Since 2009, OFAC has designated several dozen key plaza bosses, drug
traffickers, and money launderers operating on behalf of Los Zetas using
Kingpin Act authorities.
Internationally, OFAC has designated
more than 1,200 individuals and entities linked to 103 drug kingpins since June
2000. OFAC designations are part of an
ongoing effort to apply financial measures against significant foreign
narcotics traffickers and their organizations worldwide. Penalties for violations of the Kingpin Act
range from civil penalties of up to $1.075 million per violation to more severe
criminal penalties. Criminal penalties
for corporate officers may include up to 30 years in prison and fines up to $5
million. Criminal fines for corporations
may reach $10 million. Other individuals
face up to 10 years in prison and fines pursuant to Title 18 of the United
States Code for criminal violations of the Kingpin Act.
For a chart relating to today’s actions click here.
###