A criminal gang responsible for transporting more than 334 kilos of cocaine from NOA and NEA to Buenos Aires has been dismantled after several operations. The case has highlighted structural failures in the internal control of federal forces, which has serious implications for the Ministry of Security led by Patricia Bullrich.
According to a report from the site Fiscales, the criminal organization was discovered in May 2024 when Diego Hernán Delgado, a non-commissioned officer of the Gendarmerie, was arrested while transporting 303 kilos of cocaine in a Volkswagen Amarok truck. The leakage of internal protocols and the complicity of some gendarmes have called into question the control mechanisms over federal forces and expose possible flaws in the screening of officers with criminal links.
An investigation conducted by the Salta Prosecutor's Unit has revealed a drug trafficking network within the National Gendarmerie, composed of active officers, former members of the force, and applicants seeking to join. Following telephone expert analyses, the existence of a WhatsApp group called “Los Peluches” was discovered, where those involved shared tutorials on how to hide drugs in vehicles, suggesting hiding places in seat backs and other compartments.
Among the main individuals involved in the organization are Diego Hernán Delgado, Federico Rubén Batista, Gabriel Osvaldo Ruiz Apaza, Francisco Agustín Flores, and Adrián Emilio Escarlata. Phone taps revealed that the gendarmes alerted about operations, shared internal control protocols, and gave instructions on how to evade checkpoints, which highlights a serious problem of complicity and lack of control within the institution.
This scandal has generated criticism towards Patricia Bullrich's management and raised questions about the level of infiltration of the National Gendarmerie by criminal networks, as well as what measures the Government will take to prevent such cases. The credibility of the Ministry of Security is directly affected, as the fight against drug trafficking is one of the banners of this agency.
