ICE Accuses Mexican Woman of Providing Cartel with Grenades and Weapons
On Friday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) identified the defendant as Maria Del Rosario Navarro-Sanchez, a 39-year-old from Mexico.
An indictment accuses Navarro-Sanchez of providing grenades to the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG), a Mexican drug cartel, and assisting with the trafficking of migrants, firearms, money, and drugs.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi stated, “Cartels like CJNG are terrorist groups that devastate American communities and have claimed countless lives in the United States, Mexico, and elsewhere.”
“This announcement underlines the Justice Department’s resolve to secure our borders and protect Americans through stringent legal measures.”
The charges are a result of Trump’s policy to designate foreign criminal groups, including gangs and drug cartels, as “terrorist” entities.
On January 20, his first day back in office, Trump signed an executive order labeling “international cartels” a significant national-security threat and commanded officials to prepare for implementing these designations.
By February 19, the US Federal Register listed eight Latin American criminal groups as “foreign terrorist organizations”, including CJNG.
Since then, the Trump administration has expanded this categorization, incorporating additional Latin American groups, such as two Haitian gangs, Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif, in May.
This extension of the “foreign terrorist” label diverges from its common usage, typically reserved for groups with political objectives.
Critics caution that this classification might inadvertently affect civilians, who are sometimes coerced into supporting these groups.
“You could accuse anyone – from a migrant who pays a smuggler to a Mexican business that is forced to pay a ‘protection fee’ – of offering material or financial support to a terrorist organization,” explained Will Freeman, a fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Navarro-Sanchez was apprehended on May 4, along with two co-defendants, who also face charges of firearms trafficking and other offenses.
Multiplying firearms and packages of meth and fentanyl were seized in connection with her arrest, according to a statement released by ICE.
A photo included in the statement showed a golden AR-15 gun, labeled “El Dorado”, purportedly found in Navarro-Sanchez’s possession during her arrest in Mexico.
“Providing grenades to a terrorist organization – while trafficking firearms, narcotics, and human beings – is not just criminal,” stated ICE’s acting Director Todd Lyons. “It’s a direct attack on the security of the United States.”
