Particle.news
Download on the App Store
23 ARTICLES
·
2w ago

U.S. Seizes Record Meth Precursor Shipment From China and Announces Sweeping Indictments and Sanctions

The coordinated moves target upstream suppliers with expanded legal authorities and financial penalties to disrupt the China-to-Mexico drug pipeline.

A Mexican Army expert shows crystal meth paste at a clandestine laboratory near la Rumorosa town in Tecate, Baja California state, Mexico on August 28, 2018.
Officials said 13,000 barrels of precursor chemicals were seized from two ships that left Shanghai bound for Mexico
US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro called it the largest-ever seizure of meth precursor chemicals
US authorities say they are now able to track meth precursor chemicals before they reach US soil

Overview

  • Agents interdicted 1,300 barrels containing 363,000 pounds of benzyl alcohol and 334,000 pounds of N‑methylformamide on the high seas, with shipments loaded in Shanghai and bound for Sinaloa cartel labs in Mexico.
  • The cargo was consolidated in Panama and brought to Houston under a seizure warrant that prosecutors said relied on the Sinaloa Cartel’s Foreign Terrorist Organization designation.
  • Officials said the chemicals could have produced about 420,000 pounds of methamphetamine with an estimated street value of roughly $569 million.
  • In Operation Box Cutter, a Dayton grand jury charged 22 Chinese nationals, four China-based companies and three U.S. citizens in narcotics and money-laundering conspiracies involving cutting agents and cryptocurrency payments.
  • The Treasury and State departments sanctioned Guangzhou Tengyue Chemical Co. and two company representatives for coordinating illicit opioid shipments, as agencies highlighted an ongoing, multi-agency investigation.