Three killed in Argentina in narco revenge case; killings streamed on TikTok
A 15-year-old girl and two women were lured to a Buenos Aires suburb where they were killed in what authorities call a narco act of revenge; the killings were filmed for a closed TikTok group viewed by about 45 people.
Three people were killed in Argentina in what authorities described as a narco act of revenge after being lured to a house on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. Investigators say the victims — Lara Gutierrez, 15; Brenda del Castillo, 20; and Morena Verdi, 21 — were raped, tortured and murdered, and the killings were broadcast live to a closed TikTok group of about 45 viewers.
Prosecutors said the victims were invited to a location in Florencio Varela, a Buenos Aires suburb, under the guise of attending an event described locally as a sex party. They were allegedly offered about 300 dollars each to attend. Gutierrez reportedly had all five fingers on her left hand amputated; Verdi was suffocated with a plastic bag; and Del Castillo suffered a skull fracture and abdominal injuries. The killings are believed to have occurred late Friday night, between 11 p.m. and midnight, with the victims then transported to the house for the alleged crime.
The bodies were found in the early hours of the morning five days after the women went missing, buried in a garden on the outskirts of the capital. Investigators say the operation was carried out by a narcotics trafficking group with its operational command in Buenos Aires, and the house in Florencia Varela was chosen to carry out the killings. A closed group of about 45 viewers watched the livestream as the events unfolded.
Buenos Aires security minister Javier Alonso said the case is linked to an international drugs trafficking gang and that the livestream served to illustrate the group’s message: theft from the gang would be punished. He added that four people had been arrested so far, and the vehicle used to pick up the victims was found about 100 meters from the house and burned out.
Overnight, authorities arrested eight more suspects, including two women who were cleaning the “horror house” in Florencia Varela. Four of those held were named publicly: three Argentinians aged 18, 19 and 28 (including two women), and a Peruvian 27-year-old. One Buenos Aires prosecutor described the case as the most sordid and horrifying incident they have dealt with.
Josefina del Castillo, Brenda and Morena’s aunt, said in a public appeal for information: “They are three young girls, three families that are today suffering and desperate. Please contact the authorities if you have any information.”
Authorities said the investigation remains very active as they pursue both the intellectual and material authors and examine possible links to broader drug-trafficking networks. The case has drawn attention to how livestream platforms can be used in violent crime and to the risks faced by young victims in the region.