"Pippo" gang dismantled in Santa Fe: cocaine from Bolivia and young man murdered in Serodino
Federal courts charged 13 people with organised drug trafficking in southern Santa Fe. The leader, known as "Pippo", remains at large with a reward of 10 million pesos offered for information leading to his capture.
Thirteen charged and fugitive chief after operations against narco gang in Rosario and surroundings
Federal courts charged nine additional people with belonging to an organisation dedicated to drug trafficking, stockpiling and distribution that operated from early 2022 in Rosario, Fray Luis Beltrán, Capitán Bermúdez and other municipalities in southern Santa Fe, according to radiofonica.com. With these additions, the case being handled by the Narcocrime Office of the Rosario Fiscal Unit now totals 13 accused.
The alleged leader is Diego Nicolás Blanco, aged 27, known in criminal circles as "Pippo". He remains at large and faces a capture warrant with a reward of 10 million pesos for anyone providing information that leads to his whereabouts.
The charges were filed at a hearing before federal judge Eduardo Rodrígues Da Cruz. Assistant prosecutor Franco Benetti described the organisation as a "violent criminal enterprise" and warned that several of its members are linked to the murder of Gastón Montenegro, a 25-year-old young man kidnapped and killed mid-year.
Detained in October, processed with varying precautionary measures
The nine charged individuals—three women and six men—were arrested during raids carried out in early October in Rosario and nearby municipalities. Eight of them were charged with drug trafficking aggravated by involvement of three or more organised persons, in the forms of transport, stockpiling, distribution and possession for sale. The ninth was charged solely with possession for purposes of commercialisation, whilst two others faced additional charges for weapons and ammunition stockpiling and unlawful possession of a firearm.
The prosecution had requested preventive detention for 180 days for all detainees, but the judge ruled case by case: three remained in prison for 180 days—one whilst serving a prior sentence; two for 90 days; three others were placed under house arrest with electronic monitoring for the same period, and one woman was released with obligations to comply with conduct rules.
Cocaine from Bolivia and 20 kilogrammes in just three days
The investigation began in 2025 following another case against a clan that was transporting large quantities of cocaine from Bolivia. In that context, Airport Security Police (PSA) followed a Renault Kwid linked to the organisation and detected drug-dealing manoeuvres and the movement of bags and backpacks at a residence in Fray Luis Beltrán.
On 19 December 2025 the vehicle was seized and its driver was detained, who turned out to be Blanco, accompanied by a woman. "Pippo" managed to escape and has remained at large since then. Analysis of his telephone revealed that in just three days of that December, the gang allegedly bought and sold over 20 kilogrammes of cocaine.
According to Benetti, Blanco's identity was confirmed by cross-referencing evidence from the federal investigation with that provided by provincial prosecutor Luisina Papponi. In November 2025 alone, Blanco allegedly delivered 160,000 dollars and 135,000 pesos, and received 66 kilogrammes of cocaine. Investigators also detected numerous transfers from digital wallets and bank accounts of those charged, mostly directed to the fugitive leader.
Gastón Montenegro's body, half-buried in a field in Serodino
Progress in the drugs case intersected with a case that shook the region. According to the prosecution's theory, Gastón Montenegro was deprived of his liberty in Capitán Bermúdez on 29 June and held at a residence in Fray Luis Beltrán that the gang used to store and distribute drugs. On 4 July his body was found half-buried in a field in Serodino, with two shots to the head.
Benetti identified Blanco as a suspected participant in that act, whose investigation for murder is being handled by provincial courts. That same 29 June, in other simultaneous raids, the first four people charged in this case for drug sales had been arrested.
Nine weapons, nearly one thousand rounds of ammunition and an apartment used as a distribution centre
In more than 20 raids coordinated between the federal prosecution and the Public Prosecution Service, drugs were seized, nine firearms—including pistols, a shotgun, a rifle and a machine pistol—and nearly one thousand rounds of ammunition of seven different calibres.
One of the most significant operations was carried out at an apartment in Rosario which, according to investigators, functioned as a distribution centre for LSD, marijuana and cocaine. The premises also yielded 3,100,000 pesos and scales.
In requesting that the case be declared complex, prosecutor Benetti emphasised that, aside from the 13 charged, there exists "a significant number" of members still unidentified. For the prosecution, this is an organisation "with violent characteristics and rapid growth", based in various municipalities in southern Santa Fe.
Source: Google News BO — Crime