A new investigative report has uncovered that the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) is behind a massive and highly lucrative mercury trafficking network, supplying illegal gold mining operations in the Amazon rainforest with toxic materials extracted and smuggled from Mexico.
The revelations have sparked alarm among environmental authorities and anti-crime agencies, revealing how criminal groups are profiting from toxic substances banned by international law—and highlighting the growing intersection between organized crime and environmental destruction.
Authorities say the operation, active since at least 2019, may have generated over $8 billion USD in profits for CJNG, making it one of the cartel’s most profitable non-drug ventures to date.
Illegal mercury trade built in central Mexico
The network reportedly centers around cinnabar mining in Querétaro, where CJNG has taken control of remote sites in and around a federally protected biosphere reserve.
Cinnabar, a mineral that contains mercury, is processed into metallic form and then trafficked through shell companies and fake permits. Investigators say that CJNG built industrial-scale operations to extract and refine the mercury before illegally exporting it to countries in South America, including Brazil, Colombia, and Peru.
The final destination for the mercury: unregulated gold mines in the Amazon, where it’s used to separate gold from sediment in a practice that causes widespread mercury contamination of rivers and indigenous lands.
Environmental disaster in the making
Mercury is one of the most dangerous substances in the world when released into ecosystems. Its use in gold mining contaminates entire waterways, poisons fish and wildlife, and accumulates in human bodies—especially among vulnerable indigenous communities.
Environmental experts now warn that Mexico’s illegal exports are directly fueling mercury poisoning in the Amazon basin. One investigator described the CJNG operation as “a supply chain of environmental destruction.”
“CJNG has diversified,” said a source with Mexico’s environmental enforcement agency. “They’re not just trafficking drugs anymore. They’re trafficking death in another form.”
Military-style control of the supply chain
According to the report, CJNG has deployed armed guards and surveillance drones at its mercury extraction sites. The group is said to be enforcing tight control over workers, regulating transport routes, and using front companies to manage exports under the radar.
In some towns in Querétaro and Hidalgo, locals reportedly know not to approach certain mines or roads now operated by cartel affiliates. Residents described trucks coming and going at night, often accompanied by armed escorts.
“This isn’t a small-time operation. It’s industrialized crime,” said a regional security analyst who tracks cartel diversification strategies.
The cartel has reportedly falsified permits, bribed local officials, and exploited weak enforcement mechanisms within Mexico’s mining sector to avoid detection.
International law and rising pressure
The trade is in clear violation of the Minamata Convention, a global treaty signed by Mexico in 2013 to restrict the use and export of mercury due to its toxic effects.
Despite the international ban, enforcement has lagged, and mercury remains relatively easy to obtain in black markets tied to artisanal gold mining. South American criminal networks reportedly pay top dollar for a steady supply, creating a new cross-continental revenue stream for CJNG.
Mexican and South American environmental authorities have begun coordinating information in recent months to crack down on this trade. But enforcement has been hampered by lack of resources and the sheer scale of illegal mining in the Amazon region.
A new criminal frontier
The case highlights how cartels like CJNG have evolved beyond traditional drug trafficking into a broader portfolio of criminal enterprise, including illegal logging, wildlife trafficking, human smuggling, and now mercury trafficking.
Experts say the diversification is driven by both profit and risk management. Illegal mining materials carry lower penalties and less international scrutiny than narcotics, while producing enormous returns.
“This is environmental crime at a global level,” said one analyst. “CJNG has found a way to profit from environmental destruction without drawing as much heat as drug smuggling.”
Calls for crackdown and reform
Environmental groups and anti-corruption watchdogs are urging the Mexican government to take immediate action.
They want the closure of all illegal cinnabar sites, prosecution of officials involved in permit fraud, and a full audit of mercury export records over the past five years.
At the same time, there are growing calls for Mexico’s federal security forces to treat environmental crime with the same urgency as drug crime, especially when cartels are involved.
