A criminal organization that carried out sexual extortion has been dismantled in the province of Mendoza after extorting a man who was told he had spoken to a minor and then faked the young woman's death, causing the victim to pay $2 million. According to the official report accessed by the Argentine News Agency, the operation was coordinated by the Ministry of National Security to combat virtual fraud, with the participation of the Federal Department of Investigations (DFI) of the Argentine Federal Police (PFA). The case began in November 2025 in the province of Chubut following a complaint of a scam against a resident of Cholila. The man was contacted on Facebook by a woman calling herself "Carla"; they continued the conversation via WhatsApp, and after exchanging messages and images, the supposed minor stated her age and cut off contact. Time later, a man presented himself to the victim, claiming to be the minor's father, demanding money under the threat of reporting him, and arguing that his daughter would have attempted suicide, so he needed urgent psychological help. To make matters worse, people claiming to be lawyers and even a prosecutor sent fake documents, including a supposed protection order for "cyberbullying" and a death certificate, in which they claimed the young woman would have committed suicide as a result of the situation. Finally, under strong pressure, the victim made several bank transfers to the scammers for a total of $2 million. Therefore, the officers of the Esquel Operational Unit Division analyzed the bank movements and reconstructed the money's path by identifying the funds that were being routed to associates of an inmate housed in a cell at the Permanent Detention Complex of Almafuerte, who is pointed out as the presumed organizer of the scheme. Also in the same province, a home in the La Gloria neighborhood, located in the Godoy Cruz Department, was detected, where two other members of the gang would reside. With the evidence, the intervening judge ordered the raids, which were carried out with the collaboration of the Mendoza Federal Operational Unit Division of the PFA, where the investigated parties, Argentine and of legal age, were identified and notified of the case. In addition, 2 notebooks, 8 cell phones, and documentation of interest to the case were seized during the procedure.
