Corrupt Chiqui Tapia reported an alleged extortion and targeted leaders of the Civic Coalition
Tapia appeared before the justice for alleged extortion
porEditorial Team
Argentina
The AFA president presented himself as an aggrieved party before the justice and linked the maneuver to a businessman connected to the speed camera ticket business
The disastrous president of the Argentine Football Association (AFA), Claudio "Chiqui" Tapia, appeared before the courts as a victim in a case in which he reported an alleged extortion scheme against him. The accusation targets Facundo Del Gaiso and Matías Yofe, both leaders of the Civic Coalition, and Leandro Camani, a businessman linked to the photo-fine business.
The complaint was filed with the Guarantee Court No. 7 of San Isidro and the UFI No. 3 of the same judicial department, where Tapia was formally incorporated into an already existing case. According to the filing, the leader accuses Camani, identified as an "operator" in similar cases, of having attempted to extort him.
According to the legal claim, Camani allegedly asked Tapia to authorize, in 2025, a multimillion-dollar business related to the installation or replacement of photo-fine cameras on highways, access roads, and properties under the orbit of CEAMSE, an agency that Tapia chairs. The AFA president claimed to have "expressly and categorically" rejected that request.
Tapia aseguró haber sido extorsionado por Camani
Always according to his version, after the refusal, pressure and intimidation through intermediaries began, with warnings that, if he did not give in, criminal complaints would be filed to damage his public image. In that context, Tapia linked the subsequent case over the alleged irregular purchase of a mansion in Pilar, through front men, as retaliation or "revenge" for not having agreed to the deal, and he argued the temporal proximity between both episodes.
In that regard, in his legal filing, Tapia requested searches of the homes and offices of Camani, Yofe, and Del Gaiso, with the aim of seizing cell phones, computers, and other electronic devices. He also requested the carrying out of computer forensics on communications, emails, and location records.
Del Gaiso's response
After the complaint became known, Facundo Del Gaiso replied publicly. The Civic Coalition leader denied any connection with Camani. "I had to ask who Camani was; I did not know who he was. This is a strategy that has three steps. The first was to remove Judge Aguinsky, the second was to persecute journalists, and the third phase is to unify cases so that everything goes to Campana", he stated.
Del Gaiso afirmó no saber quien era Camani
Along the same lines, he maintained that this maneuver is "part of the operation to cover up the sun that Tapia and Toviggino have" and he stated that he is not worried. "This is the cost that, as a political force, we are used to paying. Nobody likes the idea that they might search your house. They are not going to silence us. We are soon going to expand the complaint against Tapia and Toviggino", he concluded.
