The Trump administration is ramping up its war on drug cartels, and this time, it’s hitting them where it hurts — their money.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Tuesday that the U.S. government has imposed strict sanctions on four individuals connected to La Nueva Familia Michoacana (LNFM), a notorious Mexican cartel responsible for trafficking deadly fentanyl into American communities and smuggling migrants across the southern border.

“Today’s action underscores our commitment to intensify the pressure on violent drug cartels like LNFM,” Bessent said. He slammed the cartel for attacking law enforcement, pushing synthetic drugs into the U.S., and preying on vulnerable migrants. “The Trump administration will continue to use all available tools to target the cartels and other violent organizations that attempt to exploit our communities and harm Americans.”

The crackdown includes sanctions on the financial assets of cartel members and an indictment from a federal grand jury in the Northern District of Georgia. In a coordinated move, the State Department has also offered rewards for information that could lead to the arrest or conviction of LNFM’s top operatives. Those targets have now been designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

LNFM, the successor to the infamous La Familia Michoacana cartel, has developed a reputation for using horrific violence to maintain control in Mexican states like Michoacan, Guerrero, and Morelos. The group has been known to use drones, explosives, and even kidnapping tactics to expand its reach and silence opponents. Their criminal empire extends from trafficking and extortion to attacks on government officials, according to the State Department.

While many Americans know LNFM as a major player in the fentanyl trade, the cartel is also threatening another key U.S. interest — avocado imports. Michoacan is a major hub for the fruit, and cartel activity has raised serious concerns about the stability of that trade.

“These designations expose and isolate entities and individuals, denying them access to the U.S. financial system and the resources they need to carry out attacks,” the State Department noted. “All property and interests in property of those designated today that are in the United States or in the possession or control of a U.S. person are blocked.”

These aggressive sanctions prohibit U.S. individuals or companies from engaging in transactions with those targeted, and they pave the way for further law enforcement actions both in the U.S. and abroad.

Bessent praised the Trump administration’s commitment to cutting off the lifelines of criminal syndicates. The sanctions are just the latest example of Trump’s “maximum pressure” approach to border security, immigration enforcement, and cracking down on transnational crime.

This action comes just days after other major moves by the administration to restrict fentanyl production and distribution, including enhanced surveillance partnerships with Mexico and aggressive deportation efforts against foreign nationals with suspected cartel ties.

Officials emphasized the broader importance of the designation — both in terms of law enforcement and diplomacy. “It sends a clear signal to cartels and their enablers: if you traffic in death and terror, you will be hunted down, cut off from global systems, and held accountable,” one administration official told reporters.

LNFM’s designation as a terror group also marks a strategic shift. For years, critics have urged the federal government to treat cartels as the violent terrorist organizations they are, rather than just criminal enterprises. The Trump administration appears to be listening.

In a country still reeling from an unprecedented fentanyl crisis, this latest move may mark a turning point. The message from Trump’s Treasury is loud and clear: the days of looking the other way while cartels get rich are over.