HOUSTON, United States

The Trump administration announced Wednesday indictments against more than two dozen high-ranking members of Mexico's Sinaloa drug Cartel.

A superseding indictment unsealed in court charged 26 men and women with material support of a foreign terrorist organization and narcoterrorism.

They are facing federal charges for their alleged involvement in trafficking hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine, fentanyl and cocaine into southern Illinois and laundering millions of dollars in drug money to Mexico.

"The Sinaloa Cartel relies on drug trafficking to finance its terrorism against the American people while spreading poison in our communities," US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. “Today’s indictment is a significant blow against this terrorist organization’s infrastructure as we carry out President Trump’s mission of dismantling and destroying the cartels."

The indictment alleged that the Sinaloa Cartel was a Mexican-based transnational drug trafficking organization that uses premeditated violence to control territory and undermine governmental authority. It also alleged that the cartel sustained its business by trafficking narcotics into the US and money laundering the profits back into Mexico.

"The Sinaloa Cartel is a vicious international criminal organization that spreads terror through intimidation, torture, and murder. The entire enterprise is financed through a drug distribution network that includes southern Illinois," said US Attorney Steven Weinhoeft of the Southern District of Illinois, in a statement. "Today’s superseding indictment targets some of the highest level of Sinaloa leadership demonstrating our commitment to use every possible tool to crush this cartel, dismantling its operations, and protecting our community from its narcoterrorism."

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) said more than 800 pounds (362 kilograms) of fentanyl was seized during a sting, which officials said "exposed a money laundering network that pushed millions in cartel profits through US banks."

"This is not a street-corner operation — it is a cartel pipeline that has flooded the Midwest with significant amounts of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine," said DEA Administrator Terrance Cole. "We continue the fight, using all the resources of the United States government, to destroy the Sinaloa Cartel."

The DEA said the indictments and arrests were the result of a years-long operation involving the removal of more than 400 kilograms (881 pounds) of fentanyl, nearly 80 kilograms (176 pounds) of methamphetamine and 50 kilograms (110 pounds) of cocaine from communities in and around southern Illinois.

Trump designated the Sinaloa Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). The designation included the Sinaloa Cartel among eight criminal organizations classified as FTOs and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs).

Narcoterrorism is a federal crime that provides enhanced penalties to punish drug trafficking that supports terror organizations.