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BREAKING NEWS: OFAC Blacklists Mexican Casinos, 'Human-Rights Activist'

April 14, 2026

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control blacklisted three individuals, two casinos and the company that runs them Tuesday after linking all parties to Cartel del Noreste, or CDN, a drug-trafficking organization operating across the border from Laredo, Texas.

CDN, previously known as Los Zetas, allegedly uses the first establishment, Casino Centenario in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, not only as a conduit to move and conceal illicit proceeds, but also as a warehouse to store fentanyl and cocaine in bulk and a location to "torture and intimidate" adversaries.

Comercializadora y Arrendadora de Mexico, S.A. de C.V., or CAMSA, the now-blacklisted company that owns Casino Centenario, also runs the second casino designated Tuesday, Diamante Casino in Tampico, Tamaulipas.

OFAC blacklisted Centenario, Diamante and CAMSA five months after designating 10 casinos allegedly linked to the Cartel de Sinaloa in Sinaloa, Tabasco, Sonora and Baja California in coordination with a parallel action brought by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network under the Patriot Act.

"Casino Centanario was known, prior to today's designation, to draw U.S. customers," OFAC claimed.

The first individual whom OFAC blacklisted Tuesday, Eduardo Islas, also known as "Crosty," allegedly oversees human smuggling operations and "cash stash houses" in Nuevo Laredo.

The second, Raymundo Ramos, allegedly poses as a "human-rights activist," but in reality serves CDN by running disinformation campaigns and paying individuals to protest.

The third, Juan Penilla, a local defense attorney, provides services "beyond the scope of a normal attorney-client relationship" to the cartel, including by acting as an intermediary for Miguel Trevino, a former leader of Los Zetas now in U.S. custody.

"This facilitation has enabled Miguel Trevino to maintain his leadership role in the cartel despite his incarceration," OFAC claimed. "The criminal operations of Miguel Trevino, and CDN as a whole, rely directly on Penilla."

Moneylaundering.com may update this coverage as more information becomes available.