FinCEN Alerts Financial Institutions to Cartel Fuel Smuggling and Tax Evasion Schemes

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) today issued a supplemental Alert, urging financial institutions to identify and report suspicious activities linked to Mexico-based transnational criminal organizations, including Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG), involved in fuel smuggling from the United States into Mexico. These illicit schemes are associated with Mexican tax evasion, known as fiscal fuel theft.

The Alert details the methodologies and financial typologies of these schemes, providing red flag indicators for financial institutions. It also reminds them of their reporting requirements under the Bank Secrecy Act, emphasizing vigilance against such criminal operations.

This FinCEN initiative is issued in conjunction with an Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions action against two Mexican nationals and nine entities tied to CJNG’s fuel smuggling. The effort is a partnership with the South Texas Homeland Security Task Force to combat cross-border financial crimes.