The Trump administration has launched a full-scale financial assault on the leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel’s most violent faction—“Los Chapitos”—slapping sanctions on El Chapo’s sons and their sprawling fentanyl operation.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that all U.S.-linked assets of the faction have been frozen, and that affiliated businesses in Mexico—many acting as fronts for cartel activity—are now blacklisted. “Los Chapitos are a key driver of the fentanyl crisis killing tens of thousands of Americans every year,” Bessent said. “We’re hitting them where it hurts.”
The sanctions target Iván Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar and Jesús Alfredo Guzmán Salazar, both sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. The two are believed to be commanding cartel operations that flood U.S. streets with synthetic opioids. Under President Trump’s orders, the administration officially designated the group as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization earlier this year—part of a broader effort to treat cartels as enemies of the state.
The State Department has also doubled down, offering a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of each brother—totaling $20 million in bounties.
This crackdown follows the cartel’s alleged involvement in the killing of a U.S. Marine veteran in Mexico and the expansion of fentanyl production across cartel-controlled territories. Law enforcement officials say Los Chapitos not only produce fentanyl but control its entire supply chain—from precursor chemicals to trafficking routes.
The Trump administration’s strategy is clear: dry up the money, isolate the leadership, and unleash U.S. power to destroy the networks poisoning American communities.
In Trump’s words: “No more warnings. The cartels will be treated like the terrorists they are.”