In Atlanta to promote the Biden administration’s efforts to quell the import of illegal drugs into the U.S., Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced new sanctions against members of a Mexican drug cartel accused of trafficking fentanyl, cocaine, meth and migrants through the southern border.
Included in the sanctions are eight members of the La Nueva Familia Michoacana drug cartel, a notoriously violent group that wars for territorial control with a slate of other Mexican cartels.
Also Thursday, Yellen issued an advisory to banks to help them identify and report suspicious transactions related to the sale an purchase of chemicals and equipment used to manufacture fentanyl and other synthetic opioids.
“Combatting the trafficking of fentanyl is a significant challenge,” she said in a speech at the Richard B. Russell Federal Building in Atlanta Thursday afternoon. “It will not be solved overnight. But let me be clear: The President and I will do everything we can to combat this crisis.”
La Nueva Familia Michoacana is among Mexico’s most powerful drug cartels, dominating big chunks of southern and central Mexico, especially areas known for drug production. It’s known for manufacturing and distributing drugs like fentanyl and methamphetamine. The group is among those that have rapidly pushed into the increasingly lucrative migrant smuggling industry amid a historic wave of migration to the U.S.
