HOUSTON, TX – Federal officials announced the seizure of two shipments of precursor chemicals intended for the Sinaloa Cartel, calling it the largest such interdiction in U.S. history.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the shipments originated in Shanghai, China, and were intercepted on the high seas before reaching Mexico. The chemicals – 363,000 pounds of benzyl alcohol and 334,000 pounds of N-methylformamide – could have produced an estimated 420,000 pounds of methamphetamine. Authorities said the street value would have reached $569 million in Houston and even higher in northeastern markets such as New York City.
Officials stated the seizure involved 1,300 barrels of chemicals, requiring 24 tractor-trailers to move them to a secure facility. The materials were linked to labs under construction in Mexico under the control of the Sinaloa Cartel.
HSI Acting Director Todd Lyons said the operation, code-named Hydra, marks the first time a seizure warrant has been issued under 18 U.S.C. § 2339B for providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He credited coordination among U.S. Attorney’s Office staff, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the FBI, DEA, Department of Defense, Joint Inter-Agency Task Force, U.S. Northern Command, and the Texas National Guard.
CBP Field Operations Director Judd Murdock said the interdiction highlights the challenges at Gulf Coast ports and called the seizure a major step in disrupting cartel operations. Officials emphasized that the designation of the Sinaloa Cartel as a foreign terrorist organization provided expanded authority to seize property worldwide.
The shipments were consolidated in Panama before being diverted to the Port of Houston. No arrests have been announced, but officials confirmed investigations remain ongoing.
You can watch the full briefing below:
