The U.S. Department of the Treasury has sanctioned the Mexican construction firm CEGESA for allegedly laundering money for the Cartel Del Noreste-Los Zetas faction. This move reveals that the firm, owned by the Garza Elias family, was instrumental in building critical infrastructure at the Colombia International Port of Entry.
The $5 .2 million USD toll booth and road contracts
CEGESA secured significant infrastructure contracts at the Colombia International Port of Entry, a facility that connects the Mexican state of Nuevo Leon with Texas. as reported by Breitbart Texas, these contracts allowed the firm to play a central role in developing the very corridors used for international transit.
In 2023, the company was awarded two specific contracts totaling 94 million Pesos, or approximately $5.2 million USD, to construct access roads and toll booths at the port. This follows a previous contract in 2022, where the firm received 15 million Pesos ($800,000) for landscaping and materials at the same facility.
The involvement of a cartel-linked entity in such high-prfoile border infrastructure highlights a recurring vulnerability in regional public works. When construction firms act as fronts for organized crime, the integrity of international transit points—and the security of the goods moving through them—is fundamentally compromised.
Bribery allegations against the Garza Elias family
The U.S. Department of the Treasury alleges that Gamaliel Garza Garcia and his son, Gamaliel Garza Elias, used their business interetss to facilitate cartel operations. According to the Treasury, the family used their companies to pay bribes to Mexican officials in exchange for lucrative government contracts.
These sanctions target not only CEGESA but also a wider network of 11 companies and four individuals associated with the Cartel Del Noreste. The sanctioned group includes diverse businesses such as a trucking company, several gas companies, and even a horse racetrack that operates a bar and restaurant.
Tamaulipas's 2022 contract denial
The state government of Tamaulipas has moved quickly to distance itself from the scandal following the Treasury's announcement. In a public statement, the Tamaulipas administration claimed that a review of their government records showed no contracts awarded to the 11 sanctioned companies or the identified individuals .
The state government specifically noted that no such business relationships have existed since the current administration took office in 2022. this attempt to clear the state's name comes as border-region governments face mounting political pressure to prove they are not complicit in the financial networks of the Los Zetas faction.
The unverified identities of the bribed officials
While the Treasury has identified the companies and the Garza Elias family, the specific identities of the Mexican officials who allegedly accepted bribes remain unknown. The current reporting does not name the government employees who facilitated the CEGESA contracts in Nuevo Leon.
The lack of transparency regarding which officials were involved leaves a significant gap in the investigation. It remains unclear whether the corruption was localized to specific departments in Nuevo Leon or if it represents a broader systemic failure within the regional procurement process.
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