In brief
- DEA and FBI seized over $10 million in cryptocurrency directly linked to Mexico's Sinaloa cartel during operations in Miami, Florida.
- The nationwide crackdown also recovered 44 million fentanyl pills, over 4,500 pounds of fentanyl powder, and nearly 65,000 pounds of methamphetamine since January.
- The seizure highlights growing use of cryptocurrency by drug cartels for money laundering, with the same cartel previously using hackers to track and kill FBI informants.
A new U.S. Department of Justice report highlighted that the Drug Enforcement Administration, or DEA, seized more than $10 million in cryptocurrency from Mexican drug cartel Sinaloa.
The report didn’t specify what type of cryptocurrency was seized. But it did say it was seized in Miami and was taken as part of a wider operation that includes California, Texas, Georgia and other states.
According to the report, over 44 million fentanyl pills, more than 4,500 pounds of fentanyl powder and nearly 65,000 pounds of methamphetamine have been seized nationally since January.
"DEA is hitting the cartels where it hurts—with arrests, with seizures, and with relentless pressure,” said DEA Acting Administrator Robert Murphy.
The DEA worked in conjunction with the FBI and according to the Justice Department "seized over $10 million dollars in cryptocurrency, directly linked to the Sinaloa cartel."
This is the same cartel responsible for using hackers to find and kill informants.
Last month the cartel hired a hacker who managed to gain access to phone data and Mexico City surveillance cameras. These were used to track and kill FBI informants, according to the Justice Department.
Drug cartels have been linked to crypto in the past with reports revealing that Tether is closely linked to drug trades.
“Unlike fiat currency, which remains the dominant form of funding for criminal and terrorist efforts globally, Tether has the ability to track all transactions and halt USDT whenever it is used in any illicit manner,” a Tether representative told Decrypt in November.
"Despite our best efforts, like most companies, we can't always preemptively stop every bad actor," a Binance spokesperson also told Decrypt at the time.
Earlier this year, in May, Decrypt reported on cartel bosses charged with narco-terrorism after links to their crypto use were discovered. This came as blockchain investigators traced how cartel drug profits were using crypto as a way to launder their profits.