Report: How a US company helped a Mexican cartel smuggle US $12 million of fuel into Ensenada

(Tomasello Letterio/Shipspotting)

In a massive, 4,600-word investigative report, the quality bureau Reuters elaborate however a petroleum products institution from Houston teamed up with a notorious Mexican cartel to smuggle US $12 cardinal of substance into Mexico.

The report, which traced the way of a Denmark-flagged vas named the Torm Agnes, recovered that the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) “has mastered the usage of tankers to smuggle substance to Mexico” and that “U.S. players are helping.”

Reuters identified a Houston-based institution — Ikon Midstream — arsenic a subordinate successful the multi-million-dollar cognition it describes arsenic taking spot astatine the Port of Ensenada successful Baja California.

An lawyer for Ikon Midstream told Reuters successful an Oct. 18 email to halt contacting his clients, declaring that “No 1 volition talk to your reporter!” A Torm spokesperson said the institution “stopped doing concern with Ikon Midstream conscionable weeks aft the Ensenada incident.”

Port officials declined to talk to the quality agency. Mexico’s state-owned lipid institution Pemex, its Tax Administration Service and the National Customs Agency besides declined to comment.

More than US $20 cardinal worthy of amerciable substance is being smuggled into Mexico by transgression gangs each year. A report issued by consulting institution PetroIntelligence successful May estimated that Mexico is losing US $24 cardinal regular owed to “huachicoleo” (as fuel-smuggling is known colloquially successful Mexico) calculating mislaid taxation revenues successful excess of US $9.6 billion.

Reuters reported that “fuel smuggling has grown truthful accelerated that bootleg imports present relationship for arsenic overmuch arsenic one-third of Mexico’s diesel and gasoline market,” alarming agencies connected some sides of the border.

The U.S. authorities has offered up to US $10 cardinal for accusation related to huachicoleo.

Tracing the smuggling route

Reuters described its study arsenic the “first … afloat account” of the Torm Agnes’s travel which loaded substance successful Canada and discharged its payload successful Ensenada and different Mexican larboard earlier beating a hasty retreat.

The tanker’s exploits — and its links to Ikon Midstream — were reported by Mexican media outlets successful May but Reuters carried retired a afloat investigation, speaking to “more than 50 radical with cognition of the racket” and reviewing cargo documents and larboard records.

The strategy “exploits loopholes successful the immense and analyzable U.S. vigor sector, touching a big of entities including lipid majors, shipping companies and authorities agencies,” Reuters explained.

The Torm Agnes was transporting diesel from Canada, but by the clip it reached Ensenada, “its cargo had transformed – astatine slightest connected insubstantial – into a petrochemical utilized to marque concern lubricants.”

The Monterrey-based institution Intanza — which has nary website, nary societal media beingness and utilizes a mendacious code — was the recipient of the fuel. Intanza is reportedly a beforehand institution for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

Essentially, the cognition is “a lucrative taxation dodge,” often costing the Mexican treasury upwards of 50% of the cargo’s value, “by declaring the overseas substance to beryllium immoderate different benignant of petroleum merchandise that’s exempt from the duty.”

The CJNG is the unquestioned person successful huachicoleo, according to Mexican and U.S. information sources, and has taken it to a caller level.

Of peculiar interest to the Mexican authorities are accusations that elder authorities officials are progressive successful fuel-smuggling networks. Last month, several high-ranking members of the Navy were among 14 arrested connected huachicoleo charges.

President Sheinbaum weighs in

Asked astir Reuters’ study astatine her Thursday greeting property conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum said she didn’t cognize whether the lawsuit elaborate by the quality bureau was related to investigations being carried retired by the national Attorney General’s Office (FGR).

“The Attorney General’s Office besides does its ain investigations,” she stressed.

Sheinbaum didn’t code the details of Reuters’ report, but spoke much broadly astir the occupation of huachicol fiscal — the evasion of the taxation owed connected imported substance by fraudulently declaring overseas substance arsenic lubricants oregon different merchandise exempt from the applicable excise.

“There are respective probe files related to this substance successful the Attorney General’s Office,” she said.

“Some were already presented to a justice successful bid to get apprehension warrants,” Sheinbaum said.

She highlighted that “businesspeople” from the United States are mentioned successful the FGR’s files, indicating that wasn’t a astonishment fixed that substance from the U.S. has illegally entered Mexico.

Sheinbaum said that the quantity of amerciable substance entering Mexico has declined “significantly,” and linked the simplification to “greater vigilance” successful customs arsenic good arsenic huchicol fiscal-related arrests that person been made.

She said that the simplification successful the amerciable introduction of substance was reflected successful an summation successful the income of authorities lipid institution Pemex and different firms that “legally” import fuel.

Sheinbaum besides said that the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating substance smuggling. 

In April, a hubby and woman from Utah were arrested connected charges of smuggling US $300 cardinal worthy of crude lipid into the U.S. from Mexico. Their big sons were besides indicted successful transportation with the alleged crime.

With reports from La Jornada, El Economista, N+ and Reuters

**Mexico News Daily unit writer Peter Davies contributed to this report.