In a superseding indictment unsealed Wednesday, 26 high-ranking members of the Sinaloa Cartel are accused of being involved in trafficking hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine into southern Illinois and laundering the proceeds to Mexico.
The grand jury document reveals the drug distribution pipeline has been taking place over the past five years.
The Mexican-based trans-national drug trafficking organization is accused of using premeditated violence to control territory and undermine governmental authority. The U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Illinois says the Cartel sustains its enterprise by trafficking narcotics into the U.S. and funneling the profits back into Mexico.
President Donald Trump designated the Sinaloa Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
The DEA, in conjunction with law enforcement partners, arrested 15 of the charged defendants in a nationwide operation involving Cartel associates.
These indictments and arrests are the result of a years-long operation involving the removal of more than 400 kilograms of fentanyl, nearly 80 kilograms of meth and 50 kilograms of cocaine from communities in and around southern Illinois.
