MEXICO CITY: Mexican authorities said Friday they seized 16.8 tons of amphetamines from clandestine drug labs in northwestern Sinaloa state, home to one of the country’s biggest cartels.

Security Secretary Omar Garcia Harfuch said the haul was “one of the biggest blows to the production of synthetic drugs” in the country since President Claudia Sheinbaum came to power in October 2024.

Authorities uncovered three drug labs, one covering an area of 5,700 square meters, in mountainous areas of Sinaloa, home to the cartel of the same name, Garcia Harfuch said in a statement.

Sheinbaum’s left-wing administration is under pressure from US President Donald Trump to crack down on drug traffickers.

On her watch, authorities have stepped up drug raids and handed over dozens of suspected cartel members to the United States.