U.S. Federal Reserve Bank's shipment of $80K to Argentina's Central Bank stolen at Buenos Aires airport

Aeropuerto Internacional Ezeiza, Buenos Aires

another caper from down south...

Two airport Customs workers were under arrest yesterday in connection with the disappearance of 80,000 dollars from a bag entering Argentina from the United States. After searching the lockers of freight and Customs workers at Ezeiza airport police also found cameras, cell phones, perfumes, gold watches and other valuables which they believe to have been stolen from air passengers’ luggage.

The deputy-trustee of aeronautics, Julio Postiglioni, said that there were “many indicators” to suggest that the 80,000 dollars missing, after arriving from a United Airlines flight from Washington, were stolen directly from the plane’s cargo bay as it was stationed at Ezeiza airport. The money had been sent from the Federal Reserve of the United States and was en route to the Central Bank in Argentina.

ok, now remember, this is ARGENTINA we're talking about, where folks don't just grumble about their privacy being invaded... they STRIKE...!

On Thursday, baggage handlers went on strike for six hours in both Ezeiza International Airport and Jorge Newbery metropolitan airport in protest after police began searching their lockers. Workers accused police of “repressive tactics” in their investigation.

as a regular in and out of ezeiza and argentina, i'm always fascinated when i read the goings-on... i've posted several times on argentina's air traffic control (here and here), an oxymoron if there ever was one... i haven't posted on some of the larger recent scandals (with the exception of former economy minister, felisa miceli, and her bathroom cash stash)... but here's a rundown of recent history...

The spectacular part of the news surrounding Thursday’s surprise airport strike was the robbery of 80,000 Central Bank-bound dollars from Washington’s Federal Reserve at Ezeiza international airport — especially coming less than two months after a far larger sum of undeclared currency [$800K*] was detected in a Venezuelan businessman’s suitcase at Aeroparque downtown airport, not to mention the 2004 Southern Winds cocaine-laden suitcase scandal now undergoing trial.

* oh, yeah, about that $800K...

Days after authorities discovered a suitcase full of nearly $800,000 that had been taken on a private airplane carrying Argentine and Venezuelan officials, one of those officials has resigned and suspicions of a government scandal have grown.

A Venezuelan businessman was detained at a Buenos Aires airport Saturday when customs officials found $790,550 in undeclared cash in his luggage. The incident preceded Monday’s arrival here of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, leading to questions about the possibility of a link between the businessman and the Venezuelan or Argentine governments.

on the snarky side, argentina is so-o-o-ooo small time when compared with the billions disappearing in iraq...

p.s. argentina's presidential election will be held this month on the 28th, where current president nestor kirchner's wife, cristina fernandez de kirchner, is the leading candidate... does that bring anything to mind...? hmmmmm...?

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