US Sanctions Mexican Cartel Racetrack Linked to ‘Torture Casino’

The U.S. Department of the Treasury has sanctioned a Mexican racetrack allegedly controlled by a drug cartel that partnered with a nearby casino to handle wagering on its horse races.

Club La Molienda, located on the outskirts of Nuevo Laredo across the border from Laredo, Texas, was among 11 entities and four individuals sanctioned Tuesday, Oct. 13, in what federal officials described as their largest financial crackdown on Cártel del Noreste (CDN), the successor group to Los Zetas.

According to Treasury, the racetrack operated a betting partnership with Casino Centenario, allowing casino customers to wager on races held at La Molienda. The arrangement ended when Mexican authorities suspended the casino’s operations in April, following coordinated action with the U.S.

Treasury alleges La Molienda remains under the control of Miguel Ángel Treviño Morales, known as “Z-40,” a founder of the cartel who is currently incarcerated in the U.S. Other cartel figures oversee operations in his absence.

Casino Torture Allegations

The racetrack reportedly generates revenue for CDN by levying entry fees on horse owners and charging admission to spectators. Cartel members also purchase racehorses, frequently sourced from the U.S., to run at the venue.

Casino Centenario was sanctioned in April following severe allegations. Treasury accused the property of laundering narcotics proceeds through its gaming operations, storing fentanyl and cocaine on-site, and utilizing backrooms to torture and intimidate cartel rivals.

A secondary property, Diamante Casino in Tampico, alongside its affiliated online gambling platform, was also blacklisted during the April enforcement action due to ties with the same operating company.

$22 Million Horse-Racing Scheme

CDN’s links to horse racing stretch back nearly two decades. According to Treasury, Treviño Morales and his brother, Oscar Omar Treviño Morales, known as “Z-42,” used drug proceeds to buy, train, and race American quarter horses between 2008 and 2012.

Over one 30-month period, shell companies and cartel proxies spent $16 million supporting racing operations in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and California, laundering more than $22 million in total.

Federal investigators seized 455 horses in June 2012 from an Oklahoma farm and other racing and training facilities.

Both brothers were extradited from Mexico to the U.S. in February 2025 and face federal drug trafficking, racketeering, firearms and money laundering charges.

Businessmen, Money Trails and Sanctions

Tuesday’s sanctions also designated Mexican businessman Gamaliel Garza García, whose horses have competed at tracks in California, New Mexico and La Molienda.

Treasury alleges his construction company, CEGESA, secured government contracts through corruption and channeled funds into political campaigns favored by CDN. His son, Gamaliel Garza Elías, allegedly delivered cash payoffs to support those campaigns.

Additional targets included a cartel lieutenant known as “Takia” and a commercial trucking business tied to cocaine shipments concealed inside trailer brake drums.

The sanctions freeze any assets the designated individuals and entities hold under U.S. jurisdiction and generally prohibit U.S. citizens and businesses from conducting transactions with them.

The cartel’s involvement in gaming includes a grim history: in 2011, Los Zetas operatives carried out an arson attack on Casino Royale in Monterrey that killed 52 people.