Volunteer Firefighter Arrested Near Pope's Mass: His Statement Dismisses Suspicions
Tomás Natenzon, 25, was arrested on Sunday in Palermo with credentials and communications equipment. His explanations to the prosecutor were considered "very plausible".
Arrested Near Pope: Volunteer Firefighter Spoke for Two Hours to Prosecutor and Authorities Consider Release
A 25-year-old man was intercepted on Sunday 8th in Palermo by City Police, just a few blocks from the location where Pope Leo XIV would celebrate his first Mass in Argentina. According to clarin.com, Tomás Natenzon was riding a motorcycle with questionable documentation, multiple identity credentials and four communications devices on him. The detention triggered alarms in the papal security operation. As time went on, however, the case took a different turn.
This Tuesday, Natenzon testified for two hours before the prosecutor in charge. The explanations he provided regarding his presence in the area and the equipment he was carrying were described as "very plausible" by sources in the case consulted by the outlet. Among the factors that changed the initial picture is the confirmation that the detainee is indeed a volunteer firefighter at the Vuelta de Rocha station and that the radio communications equipment he was carrying corresponds to his professional activity as a specialist in that field, many of them on loan.
The licence plate of his motorcycle, which was initially flagged as falsified, is actually the one used by licensed radio amateurs. The weapon found at his home is legally registered and he had permission to carry it. "That is why his release is being evaluated pending full clarification of some points," a source in the case told Clarín.
The weakest point in Natenzon's situation is that the authorisation to circulate in the restricted area was prepared by him informally. Nonetheless, it was verified that he participated in the installation of communications equipment for the event for one of the companies he works for, which would explain his presence within the security perimeter.
The prosecutor and his defence lawyer, Juan Manuel Dragani, also requested a psychiatric examination by the Forensic Medical Corps. Natenzon's family indicated that the young man has an Asperger's diagnosis. Most likely, according to sources, he will regain his freedom on Thursday.
Natenzon was placed at the disposal of prosecutor Rivolo and judge María Romilda Servini de Cubria from the moment of his arrest. His social media reinforces the profile he presented to investigators. His last Facebook post, dated 8 September, describes approval of a Restricted Radio Operator course taught by the Argentine Federal Police: "Of 30 students only 12 passed this certification, with 5 members of the Trunkline Radio Communications team from BVVR-FEBOCABA of the Volunteer Firefighters System of Buenos Aires City," he wrote in that post, where he appears posing at the Training and Technology Centre of the Federal Police.
His social media profile identifies him as a young man raised in Cardales who plays golf and horse riding, plays the piano and in 2020 joined the volunteer firefighter corps at Vuelta de Rocha to specialise in communications. He currently serves as third officer at that station. In April 2025 he was commended for an act of bravery: he saved a 15-month-old baby who was suffocating.
When officers intercepted him, in an area that also borders the United States Embassy, Natenzon identified himself as a volunteer firefighter and displayed a circulation authorisation which appeared to be authentic. What caught the attention of police was the multiplicity of credentials and the quantity of radio equipment. According to available information, the detainee began to become agitated and raised his voice, which complicated his situation, especially given the presence of senior authorities from the Buenos Aires Security Ministry in the vicinity.
The security operation designed for the visit of the Supreme Pontiff was conceived with zero tolerance for any anomaly, especially in the perimeter of the Monument to the Spanish, where the main stage was set up. That level of alert was what led to Natenzon's arrest on Sunday morning, when the Pope had not yet begun his tour of Buenos Aires.
Source: Google News AR — Crime