US sanctions Mexican cartel CDN’s horse-racing, business network

MEXICO CITY, Oct 13 (Reuters) The US Treasury Department on Tuesday sanctioned four people and 11 entities tied to the Cartel del Noreste (CDN), targeting a business network spanning horse ​racing, construction, trucking and the energy sector that Washington ‌says helped finance the Mexican criminal group. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called it the agency s largest action to date against CDN s financial machinery, highlighting the cartel s persistence in using horse racing to launder money. • Designated individuals include Pablo Cesar Guajardo ‌Alvarez, ​alias Takia, the accused CDN plaza boss in ⁠Nuevo Laredo and a ⁠former leader of the cartel s sicarios. • Nuevo Laredo businessman Gamaliel Garza Garcia, involved in horse racing in both the US and Mexico, and his son were sanctioned alongside nine companies, including a ​quarter-horse racing stable, construction firms and fuel and gas businesses that Treasury said operated in support of the cartel. • The action ⁠comes as US of