Authorities have stepped up their search for a minor who disappeared 17 days ago in northern Argentina, where residents protested and clashed with police demanding results. Security Minister Patricia Bullrich traveled to the area.
Loan Danilo Peña, 5 years old, disappeared on Thursday, June 13 at noon while having lunch with relatives at his paternal grandmother’s home, a humble country house near the town of 9 de Julio. According to Minister Bullrich, the minor disappeared silently, which opens up many possibilities.
The house is located near forests where all types of wild animals live, including pumas.
The minister went to the province of Corrientes to get involved in the search for the minor. Meanwhile, Argentine media indicated that there had been a change in the investigation after a statement from Loan’s aunt, who pointed to an accident and a motive more related to the family and less related to the hypothesis of human trafficking that had been worked on during the week. Other witnesses disputed her testimony.
The authorities neither confirmed nor denied. President Javier Milei declared to national media on Sunday that work continues on all hypotheses.
“I am in 9 de Julio, Corrientes, to accompany federal judge Cristina Pozzer Penzo and the Federal Forces in the investigation and the searches to find Loan. No hypothesis has been ruled out. All our efforts have been put here,” said Bullrich through her account on the social network X.
Several residents of 9 de Julio protested on Sunday in front of the hotel where Loan’s aunt is staying and threw stones at the place, in open confrontations with the police guarding it, as broadcast on Argentine television. The disappearance of the child, which has captured the attention of Argentine public opinion, has mobilized various security forces.
There are six people in preventive detention, including an uncle of the minor and a police commissioner accused of alleged cover-up. Other suspects are a married couple made up of a retired sailor and a former civil servant, as well as another couple.
Most of the suspects attended the lunch at the grandmother’s house. Investigators are trying to determine whether the arrested couple could have transported Loan in a van and a car on the day of his disappearance, after trained dogs detected traces of the child in both vehicles.
Connect with the Voice of America! Subscribe to our channels Youtube, WhatsApp and the newsletter. Activate notifications and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram.
Add Comment