Brothers Working at Judiciary Council Convicted for Membership in Kidnapping Gang

Two brothers, Matías and Juan Jesús Más, who were employed by Argentina's Council of the Judiciary, have been convicted for their roles in an illicit association involved in extortionate kidnappings.

Matías Más, 30, received a three-year suspended prison sentence, while his 24-year-old brother, Juan Jesús, was sentenced to ten years. The verdict was delivered by Federal Oral Court No. 2 of San Martín. The court's detailed reasoning is expected next week, with the public prosecutor Alberto Gentili representing the Ministry of Public Prosecution.

The brothers, along with other gang members, were held in preventive detention awaiting trial. Matías worked as a driver and Juan Jesús in security at the Council of the Judiciary. They were arrested in July 2023 following operations by the La Matanza Police Investigation Division. The investigation, overseen by Morón federal judge Jorge Rodríguez and prosecutor Sebastián Basso, led to four other arrests.

Judicial sources revealed that the Más brothers provided a Volkswagen Amarok, part of the Council of the Judiciary's vehicle fleet, to the gang. In one instance, the group obtained $73,900 and $1,832,000 in ransom. During the extortion calls, captors threatened to cut off a victim's finger. "Do you think I'm playing? Damn you! I want the dollars hidden under the concrete floor. Are you playing dumb? You know what I'm talking about. Get me the dollars or I'll cut off a finger!" one of the kidnappers was heard shouting in a recorded call.

The victims were not chosen randomly. One target was a criminal involved in a robbery in Buenos Aires, and another was a minor relative of a criminal. Investigators learned that the first victim possessed a substantial amount of money due to a recent robbery. The criminal organization operated by simulating police raids to carry out the kidnappings. During one such simulated raid, Buenos Aires police seized similar clothing.