The U.S. Department of State has announced rewards of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of two alleged leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel in Tijuana.
Through its Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the State Department is offering $5 million for each of the brothers:
- René Arzate-García, also known as “La Rana”
- Alfonso Arzate-García, also known as “Aquiles”
The rewards are being offered in coordination with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s San Diego Field Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, as part of a joint effort to bring the brothers to justice.
According to the DEA, the Arzate-García brothers have controlled the Tijuana territory for the Sinaloa Cartel for roughly 15 years. Authorities say they maintained power through violence, strategic alliances, and significant local influence, including corruption of political and law enforcement officials.
Despite ongoing internal conflicts within the cartel, officials say the brothers continue to oversee a key drug trafficking corridor into the United States. Federal authorities allege their operations include the trafficking of illicit fentanyl into U.S. communities.
Keep reading: Tijuana Reports 222 Arrests Over Five Days
Under the Trump administration, the Sinaloa Cartel was designated both a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
The brothers were indicted separately on federal drug trafficking charges in 2014 in the Southern District of California and remain fugitives.
