Operation Dakovo: Diego Dirisio Extradited to Brazil

Diego Hernán Dirisio, the Argentine businessman described as the key figure in the International Auto Supply SA arms case, has been extradited from Argentina to Brazil. His transfer marks a major step in Operation Dakovo, an international investigation into weapons trafficking.

The 49-year-old former head of IAS in Paraguay had been held at Bouwer prison in Córdoba since February 2024. He was arrested alongside his wife, the former Paraguayan model Julieta Nardi, after months as an international fugitive. Following the Brazilian Supreme Court’s extradition ruling, Argentine Federal Police and Interpol escorted Dirisio to Ingeniero Ambrosio Taravella International Airport. A special flight placed him at the disposal of the Brazilian federal court seeking his appearance.

Brazilian authorities accuse Dirisio of international arms trafficking and money laundering. Investigators estimate that the network legally imported more than $230 million worth of European weapons into Paraguay. The firearms included rifles and pistols from countries including Croatia, Turkey, the Czech Republic and Slovenia. Their identification numbers were allegedly removed in Paraguay before the weapons were resold to groups operating along the Paraguay-Brazil border.

The weapons were then trafficked into the favelas and criminal strongholds of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, supplying factions including the First Capital Command, known as the PCC, and Comando Vermelho. The case also exposed alleged complicity, bribes and impunity within Paraguay’s Directorate of War Material and among senior military officers who allegedly facilitated the weapons’ entry and diversion for years.

Julieta Vanesa Nardi Aranda remains detained in Córdoba while awaiting the final stage of her extradition process in the same case.