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The United States has sanctioned 15 people and companies in Ecuador over accusations that they ran thousands of kilograms of cocaine a month toward Mexico under the cover of a legitimate fishing business.

Getting into it: The announcement came from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control on Thursday, which also blocked 10 Ecuadorian fishing vessels as property tied to the network. The people named are affiliated with Los Choneros and Los Lobos, two Ecuadorian gangs the State Department designated as foreign terrorist organizations in September 2025.

The mechanics of their alleged operation are the interesting part. The Treasury says a fleet operating out of Manta on Ecuador’s Pacific coast used real fishing boats to meet go-fast speedboats at sea, handing over fuel, food, and medical care so the drug boats could make the long run north through the eastern Pacific. The larger boats also watched for law enforcement. From Mexico, the Sinaloa Cartel and Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación handled the last leg into the United States. The fishing boats were reportedly using government-subsidized fuel to do the refueling.

Treasury puts Arcasdenoe S.A. at the middle of it (a family fishing company it says Alfonso Mero Mero ran with his sons Roberth and Edwar Mero Arcentales). Julio Javier Mero Franco allegedly coordinated 30 to 40 tons of cocaine a month out of Ecuador. Milton Edixon Martinez Mendoza worked with both gangs, Jhonny Francisco Vera Laz operated under Mero Franco, and Byron Aldino Mero Bermello and Jimmy Leonidas Alarcon Holguin handled refueling. Alarcon Holguin controls half a dozen companies in Ecuador, all but one of them fishing operations.

The ten blocked vessels are Todos Vuelven, Arca De Noe III, Arca De Noe III Jr, Arca De Noe IV, Arca De Noe V, Conquista, Siempre Mi Arca, Rey De Arca, Costa Marlin, and Solo Es Mejor, with Todos Vuelven accused of hauling multi-ton loads itself.

In a statement, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “Working alongside our law enforcement partners, we will continue to disrupt the cartels’ drug trafficking operations and protect our borders.”

This is one of nearly 30 actions Treasury has taken against more than 300 people and entities since the start of 2025.