Dr. Rahul Gupta Statement on New Sanctions Announced by Treasury Department to Counter Transnational Criminal Organizations and Illicit Drug Trafficking of Fentanyl
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), released a statement on new sanctions targeting three individuals and nine entities released by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) pursuant to President Biden’s Executive Order (E.O.) 14059 for supplying illicit fentanyl, synthetic stimulants, cannabinoids, and opioids to U.S. markets through internet sales and a host of shell companies. These actions represent the first use of E.O. 14059 to target those involved in the sale of illicit drugs purchased online and via darknet marketplaces. Since E.O. 14059 was signed in December 2021, OFAC has designated 34 individuals and 30 entities involved in the illicit drug trade, including clandestinely manufactured fentanyl.[1]
“President Biden has made clear that addressing addiction and the overdose epidemic is an urgent priority of this administration,” said Dr. Gupta. “These sanctions made possible by President Biden’s Executive Orders enhance U.S. efforts to degrade the capabilities of drug trafficking organizations and disrupt the supply of illicit drugs like fentanyl entering our country. They represent an important part of the President’s Strategy to beat the overdose epidemic, which includes historic investments in public health interventions and concrete actions to disrupt the flow of illicit drugs driving addiction and the overdose epidemic.”
The Executive Orders provide additional tools and capabilities that allow the United States to more effectively address this threat to the American people, and exercise global leadership on this important issue.
Read the Biden-Harris Administration’s inaugural National Drug Control Strategy HERE and the fact sheet HERE.
Read about actions the Administration has taken to address addiction and the overdose epidemic HERE.
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[1] Consolidated from multiple U.S. Department of the Treasury press releases, available at https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases.
