US sanctions Mexican cartel, its leader for ‘fuel and oil theft’

The US Treasury Department on Wednesday imposed sanctions on a Mexican cartel and its imprisoned leader, alleging the group profits from stolen oil and gas.

In a statement, the Treasury said its Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated the Guanajuato-based Cartel de Santa Rosa de Lima (CSRL), alleging it generates significant "revenue from fuel and oil theft in the Mexican state of Guanajuato."

OFAC also sanctioned Jose Antonio Yepez Ortiz, known as "El Marro," the group's alleged ringleader.

"President Trump made a promise to pursue the total elimination of drug cartels to protect the American people," Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said in a statement.

"At my direction, the Treasury Department is aggressively cutting these criminals off from the U.S. financial system," he added.