Action Taken in Coordination with U.S. Law Enforcement and the Government of Mexico
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned 17 individuals and entities involved in the international proliferation of equipment used to produce illicit drugs. These targets are directly or indirectly involved in the sale of pill press machines, die molds, and other equipment used to impress counterfeit trade markings of legitimate pharmaceuticals onto illicitly produced pills, often laced with fentanyl, frequently destined for U.S. markets.
“Treasury’s sanctions target every stage of the deadly supply chain fueling the surge in fentanyl poisonings and deaths across the country,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. “Counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl constitute a leading cause of these deaths, devastating thousands of American families each year. We remain committed to using all authorities against enablers of illicit drug production to disrupt this deadly global production and counter the threat posed by these drugs.”
These designations, which target seven entities and six individuals based in China and one entity and three individuals based in Mexico, would not have been possible without the cooperation, support and ongoing collaboration among OFAC; the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), including the Special Operations Division; Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and its El Paso Field Office; and the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency. These partnerships highlight the Biden-Harris Administration’s strengthened whole-of-government offensive to save lives by disrupting illicit fentanyl supply chains around the globe. Pertaining to Mexico-based persons sanctioned today, this action was also coordinated closely with the Government of Mexico, including the Unidad de Inteligencia Financiera (Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit).
PILL PRESS AND COUNTERFEIT PILL TYPOLOGY
