‘I Know El Tanque’: Arrest of Alleged CJNG Fuel Boss Puts Spotlight Back on Leaked Audios of Brothers Close to AMLO’s Son ‘Andy’ López Beltrán
The arrest of Iván Cazarín Molina, “El Tanque,” in Zapopan, Jalisco, has put a name Mexico already knew from leaked audios back in the headlines. In August, the outlet Latinus published 2023 recordings in which Luis Alberto Olán, brother of Tabasco businessman Jorge Amílcar Olán, a close friend of former President López Obrador’s son Andrés “Andy” López Beltrán, says: “Él sabe que yo conozco al ‘Tanque’, aquí, al de la maña” (“He knows I know ‘El Tanque’ here, the mob guy”). El Universal, Infobae, La Silla Rota and Expansión revisited the recordings on Oct. 6, 2026, a day after the arrest.
What the audios say
According to Proceso and El Imparcial’s Aug. 18 accounts of the Latinus report, Amílcar Olán tells businessman Ángel Montero that his brother “trae el mango de todo” and that “todos son sus brothers, sus compas.” Expansión and La Silla Rota report that Luis Alberto Olán allegedly used his tie to El Tanque to stop the CJNG from extorting quarry operators that supplied crushed stone for the Maya Train and the Interoceanic Train. Expansión calls Amílcar Olán the main ballast supplier for those projects.
These are claims drawn from recordings published by a media outlet. Neither Olán brother, nor López Beltrán, has been charged with any crime. Proceso reported in August that the FGR (Mexico’s federal prosecutors) said it had no evidence “with the legal force necessary” to open an inquiry into López Beltrán over fuel-theft claims. On Sept. 28, Infobae quoted President Claudia Sheinbaum as saying prosecutors should open a case on Amílcar Olán only if there is proof, “not because TV Azteca says so.” None of the Oct. 6 reports reviewed includes a response from the Olán brothers or López Beltrán.
The arrest and the U.S. angle
Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch said El Tanque, an alleged CJNG co-founder, ran operations in Veracruz, Oaxaca, Tabasco and Puebla. He linked him to homicide, extortion, fuel theft and money laundering, and to the 2015 downing of an Army helicopter in Jalisco. The U.S. Treasury sanctioned him in September 2024. CBS News reported that Treasury accuses him of selling stolen fuel to third parties who resell it into the U.S. market, “often in Texas.” He has not been convicted.
Sources
- El Universal (Nataly Romero), “Los audios que revelan la cercanía de ‘El Tanque’… con Amílcar Olán,” Oct. 6, 2026
- Infobae (Miguel Flores), “Cae ‘El Tanque’, cofundador del CJNG… es vinculado a los hijos de AMLO,” Oct. 6, 2026
- La Silla Rota, “Cae ‘El Tanque’, presunto operador del CJNG ligado a hermano de Olán,” Oct. 6, 2026
- Expansión Política, “Luis Alberto Olán… señalado como enlace con el CJNG,” Oct. 2, 2026
- Proceso, “Publican audios sobre presuntos vínculos de Amílcar Olán… con una célula del CJNG,” Aug. 18, 2026
- El Imparcial, “‘Yo conozco a El Tanque’: Loret de Mola difunde audios…,” Aug. 18, 2026
- Infobae, “Amílcar Olán debe ser investigado por huachicol fiscal si existen pruebas, afirma Sheinbaum,” Sept. 28, 2026
- CBS News, “Alleged Jalisco cartel leader and fuel smuggler dubbed ‘The Tank’ is arrested in Mexico,” Oct. 6, 2026
- Photos: Mexico’s Security Cabinet handout, via Infobae
Reported Oct. 6, 2026, from the sources above. The Narco Blog has not heard the recordings independently; quotes come from the outlets cited. Cazarín Molina, the Olán brothers and López Beltrán have not been convicted of any crime, and allegations may change as the FGR files charges.