Spelling error on WhatsApp exposes architect's murder in Paraná
A message containing the word "bolviendo" alerted the sister of Rodolfo Bassi, aged 61, who was found dead in an apartment in Paraná. Two labourers were detained and remanded in custody.
"Bolviendo": the word that sparked the investigation
On 1 September, a WhatsApp message sent from the mobile phone of architect Rodolfo Augusto Bassi, aged 61, exposed his own murder. According to rpp.pe, Bassi's sister received the text "Hi, I'm bolviendo from Rosario, Moni. We'll talk soon" from the professional's number and immediately detected the anomaly: "Rody", as the architect's acquaintances called him, wrote with correct spelling and would never have written "bolviendo" with a "b".
Bassi had maintained telephone contact with his partner until 4:00 p.m. that afternoon. From that moment on he stopped answering calls and messages, which caused concern among those close to him. His sister attempted to contact him to find out about the progress of supervision of a remodelling project he was to carry out that day. The response received, with that revealing spelling mistake, dispelled any doubt: it was not him writing.
The search and discovery of the body
The family filed a police report the following day. Gustavo, the victim's brother and owner of a building materials yard, joined forces from the Entre Ríos Police in inspecting each of the works in charge of the architect. The Missing Persons Division and the Homicide Division worked together, deploying across different points in the provincial capital.
The group, made up of Bassi's brothers and brothers-in-law, headed to a residential complex in the Paraná XIV neighbourhood to inspect one of the rental properties belonging to the professional. Upon entering, the security forces found the man's body tied to a chair with wire at head height and around the legs.
Forensic personnel seized a hammer identified as the suspected murder weapon and the remains of a Tramontina-type knife. The preliminary autopsy report revealed stab wounds in various areas of the body and serious injuries to the skull caused by impacts with a blunt object.
The cameras and the crumbling alibi
Analysis of recordings from the perimeter security cameras allowed police to identify a vehicle parked at the apartment exit at the estimated time of the crime. During interviews with workers and acquaintances of the victim, suspicions pointed to the professional's immediate circle.
"There was an initial hypothesis pointing to a labourer, but we didn't know who it could be," said sources from the investigation cited by the newspaper Clarín.
The investigation took a decisive turn when Carlos Gastón Aguilar, aged 48, a labourer who carried out maintenance work for Bassi and to whom the architect occasionally allowed to live in his properties, presented himself to declare before the officers driving the same model of vehicle that appeared in the recordings. Aguilar claimed he used the vehicle for work through a ride-sharing application along with another person. That person, when summoned by police, contradicted his account and placed the labourer at the crime scene alongside a second worker: Claudio Ramón Inofre, aged 52.
The arrest at the provincial checkpoint
After Aguilar's arrest was ordered, police intercepted Inofre before midnight at the last provincial checkpoint, on board a coach heading to Misiones province. In his possession were documents and the mobile phone of the deceased—the same one from which the message with the incriminating spelling had been sent.
According to the proceedings handled by prosecutor Juan Manuel Pereyra, published by the newspaper UNO Entre Ríos, the events occurred between 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. on 1 September. The accused are said to have taken advantage of the relationship of trust that Inofre maintained with the victim to accost him and overpower him by beating. While Aguilar kept watch over the architect at the property, Inofre used Bassi's Yamaha XTZ 125 motorcycle to travel to the professional's private residence, located at Dupuy Street number 300, where he stole cash and valuable items before returning with the victim's helmet.
Both used the stolen mobile phone to send messages and buy time for their escape. The prosecution determined that the two accused inflicted physical violence on Bassi until causing his death.
Custody and motive under investigation
At the hearing held before Judge of Guarantees Jorge Sueldo, Aguilar and Inofre refused to testify. The magistrate ordered 60 days' preventive custody for both at Penal Unit No. 1 in Paraná. The prosecution is evaluating whether the act resulted from a planned robbery or whether there were previous debts or revenge; neither of the detainees had criminal records.
The death of Rodolfo Bassi caused shock in the Entre Ríos capital. The architect was recognised for his work in property remodelling, his dedication to scratch art and his support for his 26-year-old daughter Micaela in the practice of competitive sailing.
Source: Google News AR — Crime