USA imposed economic sanctions on eight Mexican companies for defrauding American owners of timeshare homes for the benefit of the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel (CJNG), the Treasury Department reported Thursday.
“In tourist destinations like Puerto Vallarta, the CJNG has become heavily involved in timeshare (home) fraud, often targeting U.S. citizens,” says Andrea Gacki, director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), quoted in a statement.
“This crime, which can defraud victims of their life savings, generates another important source of income for the cartel.”which traffics part of the fentanyl that enters the United States, he adds, and ensures that many of those scammed are usually older people.
According to the Treasury Department, one of the scams involves telling timeshare owners that they have potential buyers or making unsolicited purchase offers, and as soon as they accept them, they ask for an advance payment of taxes, assuring them that they will they will return them when they close the operation. After making several payments, the owners realize that the offers were fictitious and that they have lost their money.
The eight sanctioned Mexican companies are defined as financial services or real estate companies.
Five of them are based in Puerto Vallarta or near this city in western Mexico, “a strategic stronghold of the CJNG for drug trafficking and other illegal activities”, which OFAC has taken action against in the past, especially against individuals linked to nightclubs, bars and restaurants, Treasury notes.
These are Fordtwoo Administrative Services, Badeva Integration, JM Providers Office, Promotora Vallarta One and Recservi.
Washington further accuses Fordtwoo Administrative Services of having “made direct payments to members of the CJNG”.
The other sanctioned companies are: Corporate Title I, Corporate TS Business Inc and TS Business Corporate, located in Guadalajara (west).
The eight are sanctioned for being owned, controlled or directed by the CJNG or for having acted on behalf of this group, directly or indirectly, according to Washington.
As a result of the sanctions, all property and interests in property of sanctioned parties that are in the United States or that are in the possession or control of Americans are blocked.
In 2020, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Securities and Exchange Commission already warned consumers of scams in Mexico involving timeshare owners, and encouraged victims to report it.
They warned then that scammers sometimes pose as employees of government agencies, such as OFAC, to gain their trust.
Source: AFP
Source: Gestion
Ricardo is a renowned author and journalist, known for his exceptional writing on top-news stories. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he is known for his ability to deliver breaking news and insightful analysis on the most pressing issues of the day.
