How Mexican cartels and Chinese criminal networks are moving 'cocaine of the sea' through Canadian ports
Totoaba fish worth tens of thousands being traded for component parts of fentanyl: CBSA report
Chinese organized crime networks and Mexican cartels are using Canadian ports to trade highly lucrative fish bladders for the precursor chemicals needed to produce fentanyl, according to a memo from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
It said organized criminal networks transport the fish — called totoaba — from the West Coast to China, while the chemical precursors to make toxic drugs are sent through Canadian ports.
The report from the CBSA, first obtained by Radio-Canada through a freedom of information request, said Canada is being used as a "transit point" for the illegal product — though the quantity of fish passing through Canada and the amount of fentanyl precursors being exchanged for it, were not included in the report.
The document, originally published in French in October of 2024, says, "Chinese organized crime, in collaboration with Mexican cartels, facilitates the illicit movement of totoaba. Illicit wildlife trafficking networks are of a poly-criminal nature and engage in serious criminal behaviour."
Poly-criminal groups refer to networks that traffic more than one illicit commodity, such as counterfeit goods or illicit drugs.
The CBSA report indicates that a new criminal network known as the "Dragon Cartel," comprised of Chinese and Mexican nationals, has been created to deal specifically with totoaba trafficking.
The seven-page document says western ports are a target, and that "people in Canada regularly engage in the illicit import, export and breeding of protected species."
Luis Horacio Nájera, a Mexican journalist who has investigated cartel activity, said the Vancouver port, in particular, is vulnerable to criminal activity because it connects the West Coast ports of Manzanillo and Los Angeles to Asian and European markets.
"As the world is globalized, organized crime is also globalized," he said.
"This is kind of the strategic point for doing this exchange of illegal goods, and they found the opportunity, the possibility and the infrastructure to do these illegal trades in Vancouver."
A 2023 press release from the U.S. Treasury Department also found Vancouver has become a "strategic" post for the Sinaloa cartel in the distribution of fentanyl.
$80K per kilo
The totoaba is an endangered fish species living in the Gulf of California off the west coast of Mexico. The species can reach two metres in length and has been the subject of massive levels of poaching for several years.
But the fish are mainly known for their swim bladders, which sell for such high prices they've been dubbed "the cocaine of the sea."
Totoaba swim bladders are sold on the Chinese black market for use in traditional cuisine, medicine and cosmetics, and can sell for as much as $80,000 per kilogram.
The rare product is so lucrative some types of porpoises have been pushed to the brink of extinction, illegally killed off in droves as poachers attempt to extract the fish from them.
Nájera said Canadian authorities will face an uphill battle cracking down on the totoaba trade because of the huge amount of cargo passing through ports, combined with the difficulty of identifying illegally traded bladders amid other legal fish products.
"It is hard because this is not cocaine, right? Cocaine is usually packed solid. It's easily identifiable at some point. This is fish — and how do you know which fish is this or that?" he said, adding the CBSA may need to invest in specialized training and infrastructure to identify smuggled products.
"When you have a container full of tilapia or octopus or whatever among these cargoes, you can smuggle these totoaba bladders."
According to the CBSA report, totoaba swim bladders are often smuggled alongside frozen fish and squid.
And while often transported in coolers and backpacks, criminal networks are expanding their methods to include smuggling them in gasoline tanks, spare tires, and hidden vehicle compartments.
Spotlight on fentanyl from Canada
The revelation comes at a time of heightened political attention on the flow and production of fentanyl from Canada.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly raised the drug coming into the U.S. as justification for sweeping tariffs, which are on hold for now.
In response, Canada has appointed a fentanyl czar in a bid to bring the already low percentage of the deadly opioid smuggled south into the United States down to zero.
Canada has also recommitted to a previously announced $1.3-billion border security plan that includes reinforcing the 49th parallel with new choppers, technology and personnel and said it will designate cartels as terrorist organizations.
Figures from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) show seizures of the highly toxic drug along the Canadian border are relatively low compared to other countries. The agency seized 19.5 kilograms of fentanyl at the Canadian border last year, compared to 9,570 kilograms at its border with Mexico.
Fentanyl has had a devastating impact on both the U.S. and Canada. Over 49,000 Canadians have died of overdoses from toxic drugs since 2016, the same year B.C. declared the toxic drug crisis a public health emergency. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the drug killed more than 74,000 Americans in 2023.
While there is renewed focus on the distribution of fentanyl from Canada, Nájera said it's difficult to quantify what portion of the fentanyl components are being diverted to other international markets once they're traded.
"Those chemicals coming from China, some of them may stay here in Canada, but I'm sure a significant amount of them go all the way back to Mexico to the port of Manzanillo or to the area of Los Cabos."
According to the Brookings Institute, economic ties between China and Mexico have expanded rapidly, with trade between the two countries reaching $100 billion US in 2021.
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