In a joint operation carried out this Friday, the National Gendarmerie and the Salta Police managed to intercept a
truck belonging to the Aguas Blancas Volunteer Firefighters
that was transporting
314 kilos of cocaine.
The cargo is valued at
almost five million dollars
.
Two people traveling inside the vehicle were detained.
The investigation, led by the Federal Court No. 1 of Salta, began based on intelligence tasks that indicated a possible transfer of a large amount of drugs using a
fire truck
as a method to conceal the crime and evade controls on the routes.
After several hours of surveillance, the officers spotted the vehicle in question and proceeded to arrest it.
During the interrogation of the two occupants of the van, their nervousness
was noted
and 12 boxes were found that, according to those involved, contained parcels.
The boxes with the cocaine and the kidnapped weapon
In the presence of witnesses, the cargo was opened.
Despite the excuses, the operation revealed that they actually contained
300 rectangular packages
with a total of 314 kilos of cocaine.
In addition, a 9 millimeter caliber pistol was found between the seats.
Given the discovery, the Federal Prosecutor's Office of Oran ordered the arrest of the two individuals, who are at the disposal of Justice.
The drugs and the truck were seized.
Chorro Blanco:
314 KG OF COCAINE IN A FIRE TRUCK
It seems like a joke, but it is a reality.
An investigation by the Gendarmerie culminated in the arrest of two drug traffickers and the seizure of drugs valued at almost 5 million dollars in Aguas Blancas, Salta.
pic.twitter.com/UHDChiG32h
— Patricia Bullrich (@PatoBullrich) March 15, 2024
It was the Minister of National Security herself,
Patricia Bullrich
, who published details of the operation on her Twitter profile.
"It seems like a joke, but it is a reality. An investigation by the Gendarmerie culminated in the arrest of two drug traffickers and the seizure of drugs valued at almost 5 million dollars in Aguas Blancas, Salta," said the official.
The Firefighters' statement
The National Volunteer Firefighters System issued a statement in which it repudiated the transfer of the cocaine shipment in a truck belonging to the Aguas Blancas firefighters.
In addition, they announced that the head of that Salta barracks was suspended and anticipated that this Saturday there will be a meeting between all the departments of the country to discuss the situation.
Below is the full statement from the National Volunteer Firefighters System:
An unfortunate event occurred last night in the early hours of the morning where a truck belonging to the Aguas Blancas de Salta Volunteer Firefighters Association was found transporting drugs.
The two men who transported the drugs were arrested
The Salta Firefighters Federation reported that the suspension of availability was applied to the head of the barracks, which is now effective. It should be noted that said Federation, with the support of the Council of Federations of Volunteer Firefighters of the Argentine Republic (CFBVRA), is taking all pertinent actions to remove those responsible and clarify the situation as soon as possible, leaving the way clear for justice to to carry out the relevant investigation.
The CFBVRA called an urgent meeting for Saturday where the presidents of the 28 Provincial Federations will meet together with directors of the National Academy of Firefighters, the Single Coordination of Operations and the Firefighters Foundation of Argentina to address the issue and establish a line of action around the event.
The National Volunteer Firefighters System fervently repudiates this terrible situation, remaining at the disposal of justice and with the hope that the actions of these individuals do not stain the work of the more than 58 thousand Volunteer Firefighters who put their lives at risk every day to Help their communities in any emergency.