Today, as part of the United States whole-of-government strategy to tackle the nation's overdose epidemic, and in close coordination with the Government of Mexico, the United States is designating three Sinaloa Cartel members involved in the illicit trafficking of fentanyl and other deadly drugs.
Illicit production and trafficking of synthetic drugs pose a serious global health and security challenge and directly contribute to the U.S. opioid overdose epidemic. As part of President Biden's National Drug Control Strategy, we are focused on both strengthening public health and systematically dismantling the global infrastructure of those who profit from the death of Americans, including by cutting off criminal actors' access to the international financial system. Today's actions are a crucial part of the United States government's strengthened approach to saving lives by disrupting the trafficking of illicit fentanyl and its precursors into American communities and dismantling transnational criminal organizations responsible for the illicit distribution of fentanyl and other dangerous narcotics. The United States is fully committed to leading this critical mission on a global scale.
Today's designations of Alfonso Arzate Garcia and his brother, Rene Arzate Garcia, along with Rafael Guadalupe Felix Nuñez (Felix Nuñez) were taken pursuant to Executive Order 14059, which targets international proliferation of illicit drugs or their means of production. The State Department's Narcotics Rewards Program
