Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez issued the following statement following reports that federal authorities intercepted 90 shipments of biodiesel bound for Cuba and destined for ENETEC S.A., an entity sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
According to information provided by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), federal authorities intercepted approximately 620,000 gallons of biodiesel valued at nearly $3 million.
Federal authorities reported that 71 tanks containing approximately 500,000 gallons were intercepted at Port Everglades, Florida, while another 19 shipments containing approximately 120,000 gallons were intercepted at the Port of Houston. Authorities have stated that the investigation remains ongoing.
“This federal enforcement action underscores the importance of cooperation between federal, state, and local authorities and the responsibility we all have to enforce the law,” said Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez. “Our office will continue to do everything within our legal authority to ensure that Miami-Dade County is not used as a platform for illegal commercial activity involving sanctioned entities connected to Cuba’s communist-socialist dictatorship.”
ENETEC S.A., a Havana-based fuel wholesaler, is included on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List under Executive Order 14404.
“We will not allow any company operating in Miami-Dade County to use our community as a base to violate the laws of the United States,” Fernandez said. “The federal investigation is ongoing, and the companies allegedly responsible for these shipments have not yet been publicly identified. However, if federal authorities identify businesses operating in Miami-Dade County and provide evidence that they have violated federal law, sanctions, or applicable export restrictions, our office will immediately review those cases and take every action authorized by law, including initiating the process to revoke their Local Business Tax Receipts when legally justified.”
Fernandez emphasized that any action taken by the Tax Collector’s Office will be based on verified information, applicable law, and appropriate due process.
“This is not about making accusations before the facts are known. It is about making our position unmistakably clear,” Fernandez said. “Once the facts are established, any company that has violated the law should understand that doing business in Miami-Dade County is not a shield from accountability. If the law authorizes us to revoke a Local Business Tax Receipt, we will act.”
“The protection of our residents and the national security of the United States of America must always come first. Miami-Dade County cannot become a safe haven for businesses that knowingly violate United States law or conduct prohibited transactions with sanctioned entities,” Fernandez added.
The Tax Collector emphasized that the federal government has not publicly identified the exporters involved in the 90 shipments or announced criminal charges related to the ongoing investigation. The Tax Collector’s Office has no role in the federal investigation and will continue to evaluate any information formally provided by federal authorities that falls within the Office’s jurisdiction.
“Our responsibility is clear. When federal authorities provide credible and verified information involving a business operating within our jurisdiction, we will review the facts, follow due process, and use every legal tool available to us,” Fernandez said. “No individual and no company is above the law.”
“We stand ready to continue collaborating with HSI, CBP, BIS, the Department of the Treasury, and all of our federal partners to protect our residents, uphold the rule of law, and protect the national security of the United States of America,” Fernandez concluded.
Dariel Fernandez
Tax Collector
Miami-Dade County
