Alleged Chinese Fentanyl Kingpin Recaptured in Cuba Following Mexico Escape
10/23/2025|Updated: 10/23/2025
A Chinese fugitive wanted on suspicion of trafficking huge quantities of fentanyl and cocaine into the United States has been recaptured in Cuba, Mexican authorities said on Wednesday.
Zhang Zhi Dong—who has numerous aliases, including “Brother Wang” and “El Chino”—fled to Mexico after being indicted in federal court in Atlanta in 2022 on drug trafficking and money laundering charges.
Mexican authorities captured him in Mexico City in October 2024 at the request of the U.S. government, but this July, he escaped the home where he was held under armed guard after a judge granted him house arrest.
On Wednesday, Mexico’s Security Cabinet said the alleged trafficker was arrested in Cuba, but did not identify him by name.
A federal official confirmed that it was Zhang, according to The Associated Press.
Deportation to Mexico
After escaping Mexico, Zhang traveled to Cuba and then Russia, where he was denied entry and returned to Cuba, according to a Mexican federal agent, who also told AP that Zhang now faces deportation to Mexico.
Once in Mexico, he could be extradited to the United States to face the multiple charges of drug trafficking and money laundering filed against him in Atlanta.
Interpol issued a Red Notice requesting the arrest of the Chinese national, who arrived in Cuba with a fake passport after he was denied entry to Russia, according to Mexican media.
According to Spanish-language daily El País, authorities believe the alleged drug lord is connected to a criminal organization with links to the Sinaloa cartel and the Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG), and is a priority target for the United States.
El País said Zhang is estimated to have allegedly trafficked more than 1,000 kilograms of cocaine and nearly 2,000 kilograms of fentanyl from Mexico to the U.S.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has been pursuing Zhang for some time, accusing him of running a criminal network that has been linked to both of Mexico’s main cartels since at least 2016.
Moved to House Arrest
Zhang is alleged to run an organization with bases in Los Angeles and Atlanta, and to have links in Central America, South America, Europe, and Asia.
He was being held in a maximum-security prison in Mexico until a judge granted him house arrest, from where he escaped despite being under military custody.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum criticized the judge’s decision, Mexico News Daily reported.
The decision to move Zhang to house arrest came when Mexico was in the middle of negotiating a security agreement with the United States, and when Sheinbaum was attempting to avert steep tariffs threatened by the Trump administration.
Trump Accuses Mexico
U.S. President Donald Trump has accused Mexico of not doing enough to stop fentanyl from being smuggled over the border with the United States.
The ingredients for fentanyl are produced in China and exported to Mexico, where syndicates manufacture the highly addictive and dangerous drug, which is shipped across the border for sale to Americans.
Fentanyl constitutes the majority of all drug overdose deaths in the United States, having caused the deaths of nearly 75,000 Americans in 2023.
The first wave of the opioid epidemic in the U.S. began in the 1990s with the misuse of prescription painkillers. This surged when illicit, synthetic fentanyl began to flood into the United States in 2013. The drug is estimated to be 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine, making the risk of death from overdose much higher than for other drugs.
On Oct. 6, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Mexican companies and individuals accused of supplying precursor chemicals for fentanyl production to the Sinaloa cartel.
Government documents filed in the Atlanta case describe a drug trafficking network allegedly led by Zhang that imported cocaine and fentanyl into the United States and then distributed it through hubs in Atlanta and Los Angeles. He referred to the drugs as “coffee” and “food,” respectively, in coded language, according to the court documents.
Zhang is accused of laundering at least $20 million in the U.S. between 2020 and 2021 through a complex network of more than 150 shell companies and 170 bank accounts.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/world/alleged-chinese-fentanyl-kingpin-recaptured-in-cuba-following-mexico-escape-5933765