A Mexican politician who is the ex-husband of a current border state governor is one of 21 individuals tied to the Sinaloa Cartel who are facing a new set of sanctions from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
This week, federal officials announced a new set of sanctions aimed at disrupting the financial side of the Mayos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. In the new action, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced sanctions against 21 individuals and 45 businesses all allegedly tied to the Sinaloa Cartel.
In the action, the U.S. Treasury singled out Carlos Alberto Torres Torres and his brother, Luis Alfonso Torres Torres, for using their political network to protect the Mayos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. Carlos Torres is the ex-husband of current Baja California governor Marina del Pilar. In a statement, the U.S. Government confirmed that it had revoked Carlos’ visa in May 2025 “due to his cartel affiliation and work on behalf of the criminal organization. U.S. Treasury links Carlos to Juan Jose “El Ruso” Ponce Felix, the leader of the Rusos cell of the Mayos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. They claim that through his political influence, he helped protect the cartel from law enforcement actions. Carlos Torres took to social media to deny the allegations, saying he is innocent. As Breitbart Texas reported, when the U.S. government revoked Carlos Torres’ visa, they also revoked his ex-wife’s as well, something the sitting governor publicly admitted to. Del Pilar is a member of Mexico’s ruling party, Morena, which has had many of its members stripped of tourist visas. Morena is the same party that current Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha Moya belongs to, he is currently a wanted fugitive of the U.S. Department of Justice on drug trafficking conspiracy and weapons charges for allegedly working with the Sinaloa Cartel.
The U.S. Treasury sanctions also named the current leader of the Mayos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel, Ismael “Mayito Flaco” Zambada Sicairos, the son of jailed kingpin Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia, who inherited power after his father’s arrest. The sanctions name Mayito Flaco’s closest allies and key Sinaloa Cartel leaders, as well as some of the businesses they used to move money, such as currency exchange locations.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.
