{"id":61262,"date":"2026-07-28T13:54:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T20:54:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=61262"},"modified":"2026-07-28T13:54:01","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T20:54:01","slug":"los-cuinis-ex-wife-pleads-guilty-narcotics-sanctions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=61262","title":{"rendered":"Ex-Wife of Los Cuinis Drug Trafficking Leader Pleads Guilty to Violating U.S. Narcotics Sanctions"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Mexican national admitted arranging more than $504,000 in tuition payments despite U.S. Treasury sanctions tied to the Los Cuinis drug trafficking organization and its alliance with CJNG.<\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

*****<\/strong><\/p>\n

The ex-wife and current partner of a leader of the Mexican drug trafficking organization Los Cuinis<\/strong> pleaded guilty Tuesday to willfully violating U.S. counternarcotics sanctions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Los Cuinis is closely aligned with the C\u00e1rtel de Jalisco Nueva Generaci\u00f3n (CJNG)<\/strong>, which the U.S. State Department designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization<\/strong> in February 2025. Federal prosecutors said the case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF)<\/strong> initiative.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0Fact Checklist<\/span><\/h2>\n
    \n
  • Defendant:<\/strong> Wendy Dalaithy Amaral Arevalo, 45, of Mexico<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Charge:<\/strong> Willfully violating the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Organization:<\/strong> Los Cuinis<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Cartel Alliance:<\/strong> C\u00e1rtel de Jalisco Nueva Generaci\u00f3n (CJNG)<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Sanctioned By:<\/strong> U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)<\/span><\/li>\n
  • OFAC Designation:<\/strong> Aug. 19, 2015<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Tuition Payments:<\/strong> $504,497.48<\/span><\/li>\n
  • School:<\/strong> IMG Academy, Bradenton, Florida<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Related Defendant:<\/strong> Gerardo Gonzalez Valencia<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Valencia Sentence:<\/strong> Life in prison (July 21, 2023)<\/span><\/li>\n
  • IMG Academy Settlement:<\/strong> $1.72 million (Feb. 12, 2026)<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Investigation:<\/strong> Homeland Security Task Force initiative<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Amaral Arevalo faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $10 million. Sentencing has been set for Dec. 2.<\/span><\/p>\n

    According to court documents, Wendy Dalaithy Amaral Arevalo, 45, of Mexico<\/strong>, pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act<\/strong>, commonly known as the Kingpin Act<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Prosecutors said Amaral Arevalo engaged in prohibited financial transactions with IMG Academy<\/strong>, a preparatory school and athletic training facility in Bradenton, Florida, where her child attended school.<\/span><\/p>\n

    The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)<\/strong> sanctioned Amaral Arevalo on Aug. 19, 2015, for assisting the international narcotics trafficking activities of Los Cuinis.<\/span><\/p>\n

    As a sanctioned individual, she was prohibited from engaging in transactions involving the U.S. financial system. Despite those restrictions, prosecutors said she entered into contracts with IMG Academy and arranged $504,497.48<\/strong> in tuition payments.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Her ex-husband and current partner, Gerardo Gonzalez Valencia<\/strong>, was sentenced to life in federal prison<\/strong> on July 21, 2023, after being convicted of conspiring to distribute large quantities of cocaine for importation into the United States.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Separately, on Feb. 12, 2026, OFAC announced a $1.72 million settlement<\/strong> with IMG Academy after determining the school entered into annual tuition agreements with Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs)<\/strong> linked to a sanctioned Mexican drug cartel and accepted payments under those agreements.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Mexican national admitted arranging more than $504,000 in tuition payments despite U.S. Treasury sanctions tied to the Los Cuinis drug trafficking organization and its alliance with CJNG. ***** The ex-wife and current…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5414,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-61262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nEx-Wife of Los Cuinis Drug Trafficking Leader Pleads Guilty to Violating U.S. Narcotics Sanctions<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The ex-wife and current partner of a Los Cuinis leader pleaded guilty to violating U.S. narcotics sanctions by arranging more than $504,000 in tuition payments to IMG Academy despite being sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, 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