Los Cuinis: Two Valenica Brothers Sentenced in Jalisco

Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat TY GUS  from Kharon

Two Valencia brothers sanctioned by the U.S. for their involvement in the financial arm of a drug cartel were sentenced to prison in Mexico on drugs and weapons charges.

Arnulfo Gonzalez Valencia, and his brother Ulises Gonzalez Valencia, were sentenced to five years and six years, respectively, by a federal judge in Jalisco. Arnulfo was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department in 2016, and Ulises was designated in May, both for their roles in the Los Cuinis Drug Trafficking Organization, the financial arm of the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).

CJNG is one of the most dangerous transnational criminal organizations in the world, according to the U.S. Justice Department. Los Cuinis relies heavily on family members to pursue its activities, according to a July 2018 article in Reforma, a Mexican media outlet.

The brothers were captured last year in Zapopan, Jalisco, when an inspection of two buildings by Mexican authorities led to their discovery, alongside a cache of cocaine, meth, cash and cell phone equipment.

Probes into the Gonzalez Valencia family for their alleged participation in CJNG money laundering activities continue in Mexico. The family has been instrumental in the success of the cartel, now one of the most powerful in Mexico, according to U.S. authorities. Another sibling, Erika, was sanctioned alongside Ulises in May for bribing government officials on behalf of the CJNG and Los Cuinis.

The Treasury sanctioned CJNG and Los Cuinis in April 2015, and has since designated a number of members of the organizations and their commercial interests. CJNG and Los Cuinis have interests in an array of economic sectors including entertainment, pharmaceuticals and restaurants, Kharon reported in July 2018.  Fashion photographer Miguel Jose Leone Martinez was sanctioned in April 2018 and is accused of managing an international prostitution ring on behalf of Los Cuinis. Leone Martinez also surrounded himself with media stars, such as Miley Cyrus, Antonio Banderas, J Balvin and others. Leone Martinez is still a fugitive.