New Delhi — The United States has announced sweeping sanctions against a transnational network accused of supplying precursor chemicals used by the Sinaloa Cartel to manufacture synthetic opioids. The Treasury Department said the designations target 23 individuals and entities operating across India, Latin America and Mexico, covering activities from chemical sourcing to trafficking.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) made the designations under several executive orders aimed at stemming the flow of illegal narcotics and disrupting finance channels linked to terrorism and other illicit networks. The US Embassy in India said cooperation with Indian law-enforcement agencies was instrumental in dismantling significant portions of the network that provided precursor substances to cartel operations.
US authorities publicly named India-based suppliers Satishkumar Hareshbhai Sutaria and Yuktakumari Ashishkumar Modi and their companies, SR Chemicals and Agrat Chemicals. Officials allege those suppliers facilitated shipments of fentanyl precursors, including N-Boc-4-Piperidone, to destinations such as Mexico and Guatemala, often concealing consignments by labeling them as benign industrial chemicals.
Indian agencies arrested Sutaria and Modi in March 2025, the US statement said. The Treasury warned that Mexican cartels have grown increasingly dependent on international chemical supply chains—particularly those originating in Asia—to produce fentanyl and methamphetamine. It highlighted the extreme lethality involved, noting that a single kilogram of certain precursors can be converted into hundreds of thousands of potentially lethal doses.
The sanctions freeze any assets of the designated parties that are subject to US jurisdiction and prohibit Americans and US-based entities from engaging in transactions with them. The measures also caution that foreign banks, businesses or other institutions that continue to provide material or financial support could face secondary sanctions.
US officials framed the action as part of a broader campaign to choke off the raw materials that enable synthetic-drug production and to hold accountable those who profit from or facilitate global trafficking networks. They emphasized continued coordination with international partners, including Indian authorities, to disrupt supply chains and pursue enforcement against intermediaries and financiers linked to illicit drug manufacture and distribution.
