Overview

• The State Department announced the offer under its Narcotics Rewards Program for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Juan José Ponce Félix, also known as “El Ruso.”
• U.S. agencies identify Ponce Félix as the founder and leader of Los Rusos, the main armed wing of La Mayiza, a Sinaloa Cartel faction designated as a foreign terrorist organization.
• Authorities allege the network moves fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana from northwest Mexico into the United States and carries out kidnappings, torture, murder, arms trafficking, and large‑scale corruption schemes.
• Tip lines include the email [email protected] and a Mexico WhatsApp number at +52 55 2312 3768, with confidential information accepted through DEA, FBI, and U.S. embassies and consulates.
• Ponce Félix faces U.S. federal indictments dating to October 2015 in California for racketeering, drug trafficking, firearms offenses, hostage‑taking, and money laundering, and the reward follows a 2025 crackdown that included terrorist designations and late‑August operations with 617 arrests and major seizures.