9202 C. Calz Tlaxcaltecas int.2 col Mariano Matamoros, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
Reg. ID
COXA841220HNENXB02, C.U.R.P.
Official reason
Today Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned the Abdul Karim Conteh Human Smuggling Organization (Karim HSO), a transnational criminal organization (TCO) based in Tijuana, Mexico. Human smuggling is a federal crime in which criminals smuggle noncitizens into the United States, as well as transport and harbor noncitizens already in the country illegally, all in deliberate violation of U.S. immigration laws. Together with Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice components, and other U.S. and foreign partners, OFAC targets these networks to disrupt their finances and illicit profits and ultimately dismantle their operations, which threaten the national security of the United States. In violation of U.S. immigration laws, the Tijuana, Mexico-based Karim HSO for years has smuggled migrants into the United States for its own financial gain. In addition to providing migrants with fraudulent documents, members of the Karim HSO leverage the U.S. financial system to receive payments for their illicit smuggling operations. The Karim HSO’s standard methodology is to transport migrants to the United States border and advise them on how to cross the border illegally. The Karim HSO’s reach extends both regionally and globally; for example, the Karim HSO maintains affiliations in, and has coordinated the movement of migrants through, Nicaragua. Sierra Leonean national Abdul Karim Conteh (Karim), the leader of the human smuggling organization sanctioned today, is responsible for smuggling thousands of migrants from Africa, China, the Middle East, Russia, Central Asia, and other jurisdictions into the United States. Karim’s wife, Mexican national Veronica Roblero Pivaral (Veronica), plays a variety of critical roles in the organization, ranging from driving migrants to the U.S. border to receiving payments for smuggling operations. In addition to Karim and Veronica, OFAC today sanctioned Togolese national Pasaman Francis Marin Abbe Pidoukou (Pasaman) and Sierra Leonean national Issa Kamara (Issa). Both members of the Karim HSO, Pasaman and Issa are responsible for facilitating the transport of migrants for the Karim HSO.
Treasury’s sanctions also complement an indictment returned by a federal grand jury sitting in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California. For information on actions previously taken by the U.S. Department of Justice, please see this link.
OFAC’s action today sanctioned the Karim HSO pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13581, as amended by E.O. 13863 (hereafter, “E.O. 13581, as amended”), for being a foreign person that constitutes a significant TCO. OFAC sanctioned Karim, Veronica, Pasaman, and Issa pursuant to E.O. 13581, as amended, for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the Karim HSO.
Transnational Criminal Organizations Sanctions Regulations, 31 C.F.R. part 590;
Executive Order 13581 of July 24, 2011 Blocking Property of Transnational Criminal Organizations
Regime
OFAC-horizontal
Target State
Criminal organizations
Measures
Blocking Property
Official Information
On January 12, 2012, OFAC issued the Transnational Criminal Organizations Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 590 (77 FR 1864, January 12, 2012) (the “Regulations”), to implement Executive Order (E.O.) 13581 of July 24, 2011, “Blocking Property of Transnational Criminal Organizations” (76 FR 44757, July 27, 2011), pursuant to authorities delegated to the Secretary of the Treasury in E.O. 13581. The Regulations were initially issued in abbreviated form for the purpose of providing immediate guidance to the public. OFAC amended the Regulations on July 23, 2019 (84 FR 35307, July 23, 2019) to implement E.O. 13863 of March 15, 2019, “Taking Additional Steps to Address the National Emergency With Respect to Significant Transnational Criminal Organizations” (84 FR 10255, March 19, 2019), which amended E.O. 13581. OFAC is amending and reissuing the Regulations as a more comprehensive set of regulations that includes additional interpretive guidance and definitions, general licenses, and other regulatory provisions that will provide further guidance to the public. Due to the number of regulatory sections being updated or added, OFAC is reissuing the Regulations in their entirety.
E.O. 13581 On July 24, 2011, the President, invoking the authority of, inter alia, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), issued E.O. 13581. In E.O. 13581, the President found that the activities of significant transnational criminal organizations, such as those listed in the Annex to E.O. 13581, have reached such scope and gravity that they threaten the stability of international political and economic systems. The President further found that such organizations are becoming increasingly sophisticated and dangerous to the United States; they are increasingly entrenched in the operations of foreign governments and the international financial system, thereby weakening democratic institutions, degrading the rule of law, and undermining economic markets. The President stated these organizations facilitate and aggravate violent civil conflicts and increasingly facilitate the activities of other dangerous persons. The President determined that the activities of significant transnational criminal organizations constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States and declared a national emergency to deal with that threat.
