The United States Department of the Treasury has imposed sanctions on two networks accused of helping the Sinaloa Cartel move fentanyl trafficking profits through cryptocurrency transactions.
The sanctions were announced Wednesday as part of a joint operation involving the Homeland Security Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the government will continue targeting financial networks connected to fentanyl trafficking and organized crime. He stressed that authorities would not allow cartel-linked groups to use financial systems to move illegal drug proceeds.
Among those sanctioned was Armando de Jesus Ojeda Aviles, who was accused of helping convert cartel cash into cryptocurrency. The Treasury also named Jesus Alonso Aispuro Felix as another person allegedly involved in transferring drug money through blockchain transactions.
The Treasury additionally placed six Ethereum wallet addresses on its sanctions list. Officials said five of those wallets were linked to Ojeda Aviles.
According to blockchain data referenced by authorities, most of the listed wallets had shown little or no activity for years. However, one wallet reportedly transferred about $894 worth of Tether USDT in April after being inactive for more than a year.
The sanctions were issued under executive orders targeting drug trafficking and organizations linked to terrorism. The Treasury described the Sinaloa Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization responsible for smuggling large amounts of fentanyl into the United States.
Federal authorities have increasingly linked cryptocurrency networks to money laundering operations across Latin America. In 2025, the United States Department of Justice said the DEA had seized more than $10 million in crypto assets tied to the Sinaloa Cartel.
Authorities in Brazil have also investigated crypto-related laundering operations connected to organized crime groups, including the Primeiro Comando da Capital, also known as PCC. Investigators there alleged that criminal groups used cryptocurrency exchanges to move hundreds of millions of dollars in illicit funds.
