Federal authorities have dealt a major blow to an illicit fuel scheme in Veracruz, seizing more than 100 tank trucks as well as over 82,000 liters of petroleum products.
The Federal Attorney General’s Office (FGR) announced the bust in a statement last Thursday, reporting that 149 vehicles, 25 containers, 17 storage tanks and 82,200 liters of hydrocarbons were seized or secured at four properties in Minatitlán, home to Mexico’s oldest oil refinery. No arrests were reported.
#FGR integra carpeta de investigación por la probable comisión del delito de posesión ilícita de hidrocarburo, luego del cumplimiento de cuatro órdenes de cateo en el municipio de Minatitlán, Veracruz, donde se aseguraron un total de 149 vehículos, 25 contenedores, 17 tanques de… pic.twitter.com/wkVtbVBvSZ
— FGR México (@FGRMexico) February 12, 2026
The FGR said that it had begun an investigation into “the probable commission of the crime of illegal possession of hydrocarbons.”
It noted that the FGR, the army, the National Guard and state police were involved in the operations that resulted in the seizure of the vehicles, containers, tanks and fuel.
In a headline, the newspaper El Universal described the Veracruz bust as the dismantling of a “megarred de huachicoleo” (mega huachicol, or fuel theft, network).
The 4 raids
Authorities seized 52,200 liters of fuel at the first property they raided, according to the FGR. At the same property, they seized 66 vehicles, including 36 tank trucks, as well as fuel containers and storage tanks.
At the second property, authorities seized 66 additional vehicles, including 59 tank trucks, as well as fuel storage tanks.
Fifteen vehicles, including 10 tank trucks, as well as fuel storage tanks, were seized at the third property that was raided in Minatitlán, located in southern Veracruz inland from the Gulf coast port city of Coatzacoalcos.
At the fourth property, authorities seized 30,000 liters of fuel as well as containers, tanks and two vehicles.
Minatitlán is home to the Lázaro Cárdenas Refinery, which was founded in 1906, making it the oldest of Pemex’s seven refineries in Mexico.
Various petrochemical complexes also operate in southern Veracruz. As is the case in various states of Mexico, fuel theft — including via the perforation of Pemex pipelines — is a problem in Veracruz.
Earlier this month, the FGR reported that 4,060 liters of fuel were seized in raids of two properties in Veracruz, one located in the municipality of Moloacán, which borders Minatitlán, and the other in Tuxpan, in the north of the Gulf coast state.
With reports from El Universal and El Financiero
