The United States Department of Justice presented a formal accusation for narcoterrorism against Carlos Páez Pereda, alias “Carlitos” or “Carlitos Rugrats”, identified as the alleged leader of the criminal cell “Los Rugrats”, linked to the “Los Mayos” faction of the Sinaloa Cartel.

The indictment, filed in the Federal Court for the Southern District of California and unclassified on July 7, includes seven counts, including narcoterrorism, material support for a foreign terrorist organization, continuing criminal enterprise, conspiracy to distribute and import drugs, and money laundering. US authorities maintain that the accused remains a fugitive.

According to the US Attorney's Office, Páez Pereda would have headed a network dedicated to the manufacturing, transportation and distribution of fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine to US territory over the last decade, in addition to coordinating security operations for the criminal organization through homicides, kidnappings and other violent acts.

Investigations also point to him as responsible for controlling drug trafficking routes from Sinaloa to Tijuana and other border municipalities, from where the narcotics were introduced to California and distributed in other regions of the United States.

According to court documents, the profits obtained from these activities would have reached hundreds of millions of dollars.

The case is part of the strategy promoted by the US government to criminally prosecute members of Mexican criminal organizations classified as foreign terrorist organizations.

The accusation is based on the designation of the Sinaloa Cartel as a terrorist organization by Washington in 2025.

Federal prosecutor Adam Gordon stated that the new legal tools will allow attacking both the financial structures and operations of criminal groups.

For their part, the FBI and DEA indicated that they will continue investigations to dismantle the drug trafficking networks responsible for shipping fentanyl to the United States.

They link him with “Los Mayos”

The accusation identifies Páez Pereda as an operator close to the “Los Mayos” faction, headed by Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, and maintains that during the internal conflict of the Sinaloa Cartel he provided support with armed men, weapons, logistics and economic resources in the confrontation against “Los Chapitos”.

The United States Department of the Treasury had already included him in September 2025 on its list of drug traffickers sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

After the accusation was made public, the FBI added “Carlitos Rugrats” to its most wanted list and maintains a federal arrest warrant against him.