U.S. Sanctions Ecuador Cocaine Network Using Fishing Fleet to Support Cartel Routes
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on August 20, 2026 designated 15 Ecuador-based individuals and entities and identified 10 Ecuador-based fishing vessels as blocked property over an alleged maritime cocaine-trafficking network operating from Ecuador’s Pacific coast.
Treasury said the network covertly moved thousands of kilograms of cocaine each month from South America toward Mexico for onward distribution in the United States. The targeted network is affiliated with Los Choneros and Los Lobos, two Ecuador-based groups that the United States designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations in September 2025, and it also has links to the Sinaloa Cartel and Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).
Fishing businesses and vessels used as commercial cover
According to Treasury, members of the network operated under the appearance of legitimate fishing businesses near Manta, Ecuador. Fishing vessels allegedly transferred cocaine and provided logistical support to smaller go-fast boats moving north through the Eastern Pacific Ocean. Treasury said the support included fuel, food and medical services at coordinated points along the route.
A central part of the network identified by OFAC is the Mero family. Treasury said Alfonso Mero Mero and his sons, Roberth Alfonso Mero Arcentales and Edwar Alexis Mero Arcentales, used fishing company Arcasdenoe S.A. and associated vessels to move cocaine and provide refuelling services to go-fast vessels. Julio Javier Mero Franco was also among the individuals identified in reporting on the Treasury action.
Other designated individuals included Jimmy Leonidas Alarcon Holguin, Byron Aldino Mero Bermello, Milton Edixon Martinez Mendoza and Jhonny Francisco Vera Laz. The targeted companies included Arcasdenoe S.A., Alho Fish S.A., Globaldistrial S.A.S., JAH-HMH S.A.S., Negocios Jimar S.A.S., Proyectos Neyzoa S.A.S. and Soisamar S.A.S. OFAC also identified 10 Ecuador-based fishing vessels as blocked property.
Action tied to broader Eastern Pacific interdiction campaign
Treasury linked the sanctions to a wider U.S. effort against cocaine trafficking through the Eastern Pacific, including Operation Pacific Viper. The U.S. Coast Guard launched that operation in August 2025; by June 2026 it had seized more than 225,000 pounds of cocaine, approximately 112 metric tons, in the Eastern Pacific.
The sanctions were supported by investigations and intelligence involving the Homeland Security Task Force-Tampa, Joint Interagency Task Force-South, the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Southern Command, the Office of Naval Intelligence, the Florida National Guard Counterdrug Program and the U.S. Coast Guard.
Sanctions implications
The action was taken under Executive Order 14059, targeting the international proliferation of illicit drugs, and Executive Order 13224, as amended, targeting terrorists and their supporters. Property and interests in property of designated persons that are within U.S. jurisdiction are generally blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from dealing with them unless authorized.
The designations are financial sanctions based on U.S. government findings and do not by themselves constitute criminal convictions. For compliance teams, the action highlights the use of ostensibly legitimate maritime businesses and commercial vessels as logistical infrastructure for cartel supply chains, creating sanctions, counterparty and beneficial-ownership screening risks beyond the individuals directly named.
