Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs)-Designated Drug Cartels

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The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the disruption of the financial mechanisms of the below cartels and transnational organizations. These organizations have engaged in widespread violence and terror throughout the Western Hemisphere, including an attack on a U.S. consular post in Mexico. They also are involved in large-scale revenue-generating schemes, including fuel theft, narcotics trafficking, and kidnapping.

The following transnational Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and their activities have led to an influx of deadly drugs, violent criminals, and vicious gangs into the United States:

• Cártel del Golfo (also known as CDG, Gulf Cartel, and Osiel Cardenas-Guillen Organization) is based in northeast Mexico and is involved in drug trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, human smuggling, and other illicit activities. CDG employs violence, including assassinations of civilians and government officials to intimidate the public and control territory.
• Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (also known as CJNG, New Generation Cartel of Jalisco, and Jalisco New Generation Cartel) is present in nearly every part of Mexico. In addition to trafficking fentanyl, CJNG engages in extortion, migrant smuggling, oil and mineral theft, and weapons trade.
• Cártel del Noreste (also known as CDN, Northeast Cartel, and Los Zetas) is based in northeastern Mexico. Its members are involved in various illicit activities, including drug trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, and human smuggling. The organization uses violence to exert its criminal control, including a March 2022 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico with gunfire and grenades.
• Cártel de Sinaloa (also known as Sinaloa Cartel, Mexican Federation, and Guadalajara Cartel) is based in Sinaloa, Mexico. It is one of the world’s most powerful drug cartels and one of the largest producers and traffickers of fentanyl and other illicit drugs to the United States. The group employs murder, kidnapping, and intimidation of civilians, government officials, and journalists.
• Cárteles Unidos (also known as United Cartel, Tepalcatepac Cartel, Cártel de Tepalcatepec, The Grandfather Cartel, Cártel del Abuelo, and Cártel de Los Reyes) emerged from an alliance of multiple cartels and other groups in Michoacán, Mexico. Since its formation, CU has been involved in numerous violent activities leading to significant casualties among civilians, military personnel, and law enforcement officers.
• La Nueva Familia Michoacana (also known as LNFM), the successor of La Familia Michoacana, is based in the Pacific coast state of Michoacán, Mexico. Its operations extend to the Mexican states of Guerrero, Morelos, and Mexico. LNFM engages in a range of criminal activities, including drug trafficking, kidnapping, and extortion.
• Mara Salvatrucha (aka MS-13) originated in Los Angeles but expanded its operations to Central America following the deportation of many of its members from the United States. MS-13 actively recruits, organizes, and spreads violence across several countries, primarily in El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, and the United States.
• Tren de Aragua (also known as TdA and Aragua Train) originated in Venezuela and has established cells in Colombia, Peru, and Chile, with sporadic presence reported in Ecuador, Bolivia, and Brazil. TdA has authorized its members to attack and kill U.S. law enforcement personnel and has been involved in the assassination of a Venezuelan opposition figure.

RFJ is offering a reward for information leading to the disruption of the revenue sources and key financial facilitation mechanisms of the international cartels, to include:

• Financial contributions to these cartels by donors and financial facilitators
• Significant transactions by financial institutions and exchange houses benefiting these cartels
• Fuel theft and other illicit financial schemes of these cartels
• Businesses or investments owned or controlled by these cartels or their financiers
• Front companies tied to these cartels or engaged in financial transactions on their behalf
• Criminal schemes involving cartel members and supporters who are financially benefiting the organization
• Business between formal financial institutions and these cartels
• Transfers of funding and materiel by or to these cartels and their operatives

On February 20, 2025, the Department of State designated CDG, CJNG, CDN, Cártel de Sinaloa, CU, MS-13, LNFM, and TdA as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs). This designation followed Executive Order 14157, issued on January 20, 2025, which declared these groups pose a national security threat that extends beyond the scope of traditional organized crime.