Cartel Leader's Wife Admits Paying Over $500,000 for Son's Elite U.S. Schooling, Violating Sanctions

The wife of a high-ranking leader within the Los Cuinis cartel, a financial arm of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), has pleaded guilty in the United States for violating sanctions by paying over half a million dollars for her son's elite sports education. Wendy Dalaithy Amaral Arévalo admitted to intentionally violating the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. This law prohibits sanctioned individuals from engaging in financial transactions within the U.S. financial system. Amaral Arévalo's husband, Gerardo González Valencia, a leader of Los Cuinis, is currently serving a life sentence in the U.S. for drug trafficking. Court documents reveal that Amaral Arévalo paid a total of $504,497 for her son's enrollment at the prestigious IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. This amount significantly exceeds the tuition fees of top U.S. universities like Harvard, which charges around $86,917 annually including living expenses for the 2025-2026 academic year. IMG Academy's fees, even without sports, range from $56,000 to $60,000 per year, potentially rising to $95,000 with specialized sports programs. This case is not isolated. A federal investigation earlier this year uncovered that two children of sanctioned drug traffickers attended IMG Academy. The U.S. Treasury Department subsequently fined IMG Academy $1.72 million for processing payments related to tuition, accommodation, and other educational services for children of individuals designated under the Kingpin Act between 2019 and 2025. The academy reportedly processed nearly 90 transactions linked to these clients without proper vetting.