Navy seizes over 17 million liters of stolen fuel in double ‘huachicol’ busts

Mexican authorities person seized implicit 17 cardinal liters of stolen diesel and hydrocarbons successful 2 large operations, marking a important stroke to amerciable substance trafficking networks.

The largest azygous seizure — 10 cardinal liters of diesel — occurred successful Tamaulipas astir 10 days aft a Singapore-flagged ship, the Challenge Procyon, arrived astatine the larboard of Tampico connected March 19, allegedly transporting lubricating lipid additives.

En Altamira, Tamaulipas, elementos de @SEMAR_mx, @FGRMexico y @SSPCMexico realizaron un aseguramiento de 10 millones de litros de diésel. Se aseguraron 192 contenedores, un buque, 29 tractocamiones, armamento y vehículos.
Esta acción es resultado de la coordinación del Gabinete… pic.twitter.com/zYOZydGYir

— Omar H Garcia Harfuch (@OHarfuch) March 31, 2025

However, the vessel, which had sailed connected March 16 from Beaumont, Texas, was soon linked to illicit hydrocarbon trafficking. Hydrocarbons are a people of compounds that includes gasoline, diesel and galore different substances some successful gaseous and liquid forms.

Federal forces including the Navy (Semar), the Attorney General’s Office (FGR) and the National Guard (GN) raided aggregate sites successful Altamira, Tamaulipas, seizing 192 containers, 23 tractor-trailers, firearms and documentation.

In a property merchandise issued Monday, Security Minister Omar García Harfuch emphasized that the cognition was a effect of beardown quality and investigative enactment and coordination among galore agencies, including the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime (FEMDO) and the Ministry of Security and Civilian Protection (SSPC) positive those mentioned above.

A abstracted cognition successful Ensenada, Baja California, uncovered 7.9 cardinal liters of hydrocarbons connected March 29 astatine a spot reportedly owned by erstwhile Morena legislator Gerardo Novelo Osuna, an state of erstwhile President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

The paper El Financiero wrote that it “was described arsenic the largest seizure of ‘black gold’ ever recovered successful a azygous location.”

Novelo powerfully denied involvement, stating helium had rented the spot to a antheral known arsenic “Gussy” (Luis Francisco Rodríguez Orozco) nether a lease agreement.

Located 1.2 kilometers from a Pemex pipeline, the tract contained 119 retention tanks, 46 tanker trailers and 19 tractor-trailers.

In some operations, authorities emphasized interagency collaboration.

Just 1 time prior, authorities discovered astir 8 cardinal liters of hydrocarbons connected an Ensenada spot reportedly owned by a subordinate of the Morena party. (Defensa)

The Tamaulipas cognition unsocial progressive six national agencies and besides recovered 2 handguns, 102 cartridges and machine equipment, alongside the fuel.

In Baja California, Pemex information teams discovered the retention tract during intensified patrols, with ongoing monitoring by defence officials.

Critics connected societal media dubbed the Baja California lawsuit “huachicol del bienestar” — combining the conception of substance theft (huachicol) with authorities payment programs. They use it to radical who person benefited from stealing and illegally selling diesel and gasoline who are tied to governmental figures oregon parties, particularly those associated with populist policies aimed astatine benefiting the public.

Huachicol alludes to activities specified arsenic tapping pipelines, using tunnels to bargain gas, hijacking tanker trucks oregon storing stolen substance for resale connected the achromatic market. The word originates from its humanities usage to picture adulterated products, evolving to signify stolen oregon diluted substance successful Mexico.

Combined, the Tamaulipas bust, which Semar deemed “historic,” and the Baja California cognition netted much than 17 cardinal liters, correspond 1 of Mexico’s largest crackdowns connected substance theft implicit the past decade.

With reports from El Financiero, Diario de Yucatán and Eme Equis