Former Argentine military intelligence Colonel Pablo Quiroga was arrested at Ezeiza International Airport upon returning from Peru. He is accused of being part of a drug cartel that planned to send cocaine to Europe, specifically to France, using the cargo holds of commercial aircraft. Quiroga, who ran a private investigation agency after his retirement, acted as a liaison between the drug traffickers and agents of the Airport Security Police. His arrest was the result of an investigation that began after the analysis of the phone of another drug trafficker, Martín Asci. The case is being handled by Judge Sandra Arroyo Salgado and prosecutor Fernando Domínguez. The Court of Appeals confirmed the charges of conspiracy for drug trafficking and illegal possession of weapons, and also ordered an embargo of 100 million pesos. The investigation also revealed that Quiroga and his accomplices had access to sensitive information and could anticipate judicial moves, leading to the removal of the Airport Security Police and the Federal Police from the case, which is now handled by the National Gendarmerie. According to the prosecution, Quiroga used a network of contacts in security forces, built during the Kirchner era, to gather information and provide services to political campaigns and private clients. His actions are part of an informal intelligence network that emerged during that period and continues to operate outside of official state structures.
