While US President Donald Trump is playing the game of snakes and ladders with tariff rates, the Chinese drug Fentanyl is producing economic and logistical pressures of an intractable nature. On September 3, 2025, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley said, “Illicit opioids coming from China are destroying American lives, families, and communities. Under President Trump’s leadership, we will use all of the tools at our disposal— including sanctions and prosecutions by our law enforcement partners — to stop this epidemic."

Opioid overdose remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45. Since 2021, more than 70 per cent of all reported drug overdose deaths have involved synthetic opioids, with fentanyl being the primary synthetic opioid. More than 48,000 Americans died in 2024 after taking drug mixtures containing fentanyl, according to the US Centre for Disease Control (DCD). Fentanyl and its analogues have a lower median lethal dose than other opioids, which makes it easier to have a fatal overdose.

China-based chemical manufacturing companies remain the primary source of fentanyl precursor chemicals and other illicit opioids entering the United States. On September 3, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Guangzhou Tengyue Chemical Co., Ltd. (Guangzhou Tengyue), a chemical company operating in China that is involved in the manufacture and sale of synthetic opioids to Americans. In addition to opioids, Guangzhou Tengyue has also sold dangerous analgesic chemicals used as cutting agents that are mixed with synthetic opioids and other illicit drugs.

The FBI has also announced a federal criminal indictment against Guangzhou Tengyue, Huang Xiaojun, Huang Zhanpeng, and other individuals and companies for a violation of Title 21 U.S. Code 846 (Conspiracy to Commit Drug Trafficking) for their roles in facilitating the flow of illicit drugs and cutting agents to the United States. The charged defendants include three individuals in the United States and approximately 22 individuals and businesses based in China.

The investigation focused on a drug trafficking network responsible for trafficking multi-kilogram quantities of fentanyl, fentanyl adulterants, methamphetamine, and cocaine into and through the........

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