The Office of Foreign Assets Control took a number of significant sanctions actions over the last week across multiple programs:
Illicit Drug-related Sanctions
- OFAC Sanctions Cartel Accountants, Announces Joint Notice on Timeshare Fraud in Mexico: OFAC on July 16 sanctioned three Mexican accountants and four Mexican companies linked, directly or indirectly, to timeshare fraud led by the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion. Concurrently, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued a Notice, jointly with OFAC and FBI, to financial institutions that provides an overview of timeshare fraud schemes in Mexico associated with CJNG and other Mexico-based transnational criminal organizations. The joint Notice provides the methodologies, financial typologies, and red flag indicators associated with timeshare fraud in Mexico to help financial institutions identify and report suspicious activity to FinCEN and law enforcement. Financial institutions with customers who are victims of timeshare fraud in Mexico are encouraged to file a complaint with federal law enforcement. Read more.
Russia-related Sanctions
- OFAC Sanctions Leader and Primary Hacker of the Cyber Army of Russia Reborn: OFAC on July 19 designated Yuliya Vladimirovna Pankratova and Denis Olegovich Degtyarenko, members of the Russian hacktivist group Cyber Army of Russia Reborn (CARR) for their roles in cyber operations against U.S. critical infrastructure. Pankratova is CARR’s leader and Degtyarenko is the primary hacker. Since 2022, CARR, which also uses the name Cyber Army of Russia, has conducted low-impact, unsophisticated DDoS attacks in Ukraine and against governments and companies located in countries that have supported Ukraine. In late 2023, CARR claimed attacks on the industrial control systems of multiple U.S. and European critical infrastructure targets. Using various unsophisticated techniques, CARR has been responsible for manipulating industrial control system equipment at water supply, hydroelectric, wastewater, and energy facilities in the U.S. and Europe.
- OFAC’s designation follows several other recent U.S. Treasury actions to combat Russia-based cyber criminals, including the May 7, 2024 designation of Dmitry Khoroshev, also known as LockBitSupp, leader of the LockBit ransomware group, and the Feb. 20, 2024 designation of LockBit affiliates Ivan Kondratiev and Artur Sungatov. Read more.
Terrorism-related Sanctions
- OFAC Designates and Identifies Blocked Property of Network Supporting the Houthis: OFAC on July 18 designated and identified as blocked property a dozen persons and vessels, respectively, that have played a critical role in financing the Houthis’ destabilizing regional activities as part of the network of Sa’id al-Jamal. OFAC’s action includes Malaysian and Singaporean national Mohammad Roslan Bin Ahmad and People’s Republic of China-based Chinese national Zhuang Liang, who have facilitated illicit shipments and engaged in money laundering for the network. Sa’id al-Jamal’s network continues to provide tens of millions of dollars in revenue to the Houthis in Yemen through its shipment of Iranian commodities, including oil, a funding stream underpinning the Houthis’ ongoing attacks against commercial shipping in the Red Sea. This action targets numerous aspects of this illicit network across the spectrum of its operations, from clients and facilitators to insurance providers, vessels, and ship management firms. Read more.
Transnational Criminal Organizations Sanctions Regulations
- OFAC sanctions Karim HSO: OFAC on July 18 sanctioned the Abdul Karim Conteh Human Smuggling Organization (Karim HSO), a transnational criminal organization based in Tijuana, Mexico. Karim HSO has smuggled migrants into the United States for its own financial gain. In addition to providing migrants with fraudulent documents, members of the Karim HSO leverage the U.S. financial system to receive payments for their illicit smuggling operations. The Karim HSO’s standard methodology is to transport migrants to the United States border and advise them on how to cross the border illegally. The Karim HSO’s reach extends both regionally and globally; for example, the Karim HSO maintains affiliations in, and has coordinated the movement of migrants through, Nicaragua. Read more.
