Jorge Demetrio Cárdenas, 52, was born in Bahía Blanca. He was a public auctioneer, owner of five real estate agencies, and a municipal delegate for Libertad in the Merlo party. In the early hours of December 20, 2001, he was lying at the foot of the Congress steps, seriously wounded. His daughter, Verónica, recounts that when they found him, he was operated on, received two liters of blood, and his life was saved. However, according to his daughter, Cárdenas was not diabetic but asthmatic. 'The bullet that was removed in the hospital mysteriously disappeared,' she added. At the time, he was enraged by the murder of his nephew, 19-year-old Walter Darío Vallejos, committed by the 'La 12' gang from Boca Juniors. He vowed to get justice and succeeded in having the entire band sent to prison. On the night of December 20, he went to the Plaza de Mayo, despite his family's pleas. 'What was on TV was only repression, but he didn't want to stay,' his daughter recalls. Later, on July 22, 2002, he was hospitalized due to high blood pressure, suffered a stroke, and died five days later. His family insists that his death was caused by the wounds he received that night, not diabetes, as the forensic report claimed. 'Father was a very loyal, decent, and honest man. He was a great companion and friend,' Verónica describes him.
