U.S. prosecutors are charging Mexican drug cartel suspects with terrorism related crimes, after President Donald Trump designated several of Mexico’s cartels as foreign terrorist organizations at the start of his term.
A suspect in Texas has been charged with providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization for allegedly trafficking weapons for the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel.
The Department of Justice’s announcement comes days after a similar federal case was filed in California against alleged members of the Sinaloa Cartel.
Council on Foreign Relations Latin American fellow Will Freeman said these prosecutions are a natural next step after the Trump administration’s designation.
“It just sends such a powerful signal from the very top of the U.S. government that this is a national security threat and a national security priority,” Freeman said.
But less likely suspects could also get swept up, said lawyer Matteson Ellis, who advises companies working in Latin America.
“It’s created a real shock to the international corporate world,” Ellis said.
Since cartel networks are so vast — sometimes controlling highways or demanding protection payments — U.S. companies that do business in Mexico worry they could end up being implicated, Ellis said.
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