The U.S. Department of the Treasury has sanctioned over 50 individuals and companies linked to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), including 13 business entities connected to two of its commanders: Audias Flores Silva (alias “El Jardinero”) and Gerardo Botello Rozalez (alias “El Cachas”).
The action, carried out by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), revealed that tequila production and agave cultivation are common denominators for both networks, according to a *Milenio* review of the incorporation documents for 12 of the 13 companies. While each network operates independently—sharing no partners, notaries, or business addresses—both include within their structures at least one tequila or mezcal company and one agricultural firm dedicated to agave.
The choice of the tequila sector is no coincidence. According to an analysis by the organization InSight Crime—based on data from Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF)—the industry possesses characteristics that make it a prime vehicle for money laundering: it is highly lucrative, and 80 percent of its output is exported to the United States, the primary destination for Mexican drug trafficking.
Blue agave, the raw material for tequila, is cultivated in high-risk areas, exposing legitimate producers to extortion and kidnapping. This vulnerability facilitates criminal infiltration into the sector’s value chain.
