The Trump administration expanded its war on Mexico’s cartels Wednesday by freezing the assets of leaders of Cartel del Noreste and “narco-rapper” El Makabelico, whom U.S. authorities said uses his concerts to launder money for the designated foreign terrorist organization.
El Makabelico, whose real name is Ricardo Hernandez Medrano, also dedicates 50% of his royalties from streaming services to CDN, the Treasury Department said.
“CDN depends on these alternative revenue streams and money laundering methods to boost their criminal enterprise, diversifying their income beyond criminal activity like drug trafficking, human smuggling, and extortion,” the department said.
Narco-rappers are modern-day troubadours who celebrate the activities of the drug cartels.
El Makabelico has about 3 million monthly listeners on Spotify, and his YouTube page has 2.8 million subscribers.
The Trump administration has made a concerted effort to target the cartels, adding CDN and a handful of others to the list of foreign terrorist organizations.
Treasury officials said CDN is a successor to Los Zetas, a notoriously violent outfit started by Mexican ex-military commandos.
CDN’s reach extends into the U.S., where Homeland Security busted a CDN-affiliated nightclub in South Carolina in June, arresting 72 illegal immigrants and seizing cash, drugs and guns.
The government says CDN is also heavily involved in migrant smuggling and forced labor in the U.S.
Also sanctioned Wednesday were Abdon Federico Rodriguez Garcia, CDN’s second-in-command; Antonio Romero Sanchez, accused of being a violent enforcer for the cartel; and Francisco Daniel Esqueda Nieto, whom the U.S. has identified as the leader of CDN’s “tactical operations.”
“These cartels poison Americans with fentanyl and conduct human smuggling operations along our southwest border,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
