Money Laundering Kingpins Among 26 Dangerous Fugitives Extradited from Mexico to United States

The United States has secured the extradition of 26 fugitives from Mexico, including senior cartel figures and an international human smuggling leader, in one of the largest coordinated law enforcement operations against transnational organised crime in recent years. The charges span murder, drug trafficking, human smuggling, firearms offences, and significant money laundering schemes that channelled millions of dollars through criminal networks.

Several defendants are accused of laundering the proceeds of drug sales, converting narcotics cash into assets, and moving illicit funds across borders to conceal their origin. Authorities allege that the cartels involved – including the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), and Cártel del Noreste – relied on complex laundering methods involving bulk cash smuggling, shell companies, trade-based laundering, and cryptocurrency transactions to disguise the source of profits from cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine sales.

One notable case involves Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuno (“Flaquito”), accused of managing the movement of millions in drug proceeds from the US to Mexico via bulk cash shipments. Another, Abdul Karim Conteh, allegedly collected high-value smuggling fees from migrants and moved funds through a network of couriers and hidden financial channels.

US Attorney General Pamela Bondi stressed that these arrests mark “a major strike against the financial lifelines of violent cartels and terrorist-linked criminal groups”, underlining that disrupting the flow of illicit money is critical to dismantling organised crime.

The fugitives will be prosecuted in federal courts across the United States, with many facing maximum penalties of life imprisonment. This operation underscores the growing cooperation between US and Mexican authorities to combat both the violent crimes and financial crimes that fuel transnational criminal enterprises.

Read the press release here.