Rafecas ordered the mansion in Pilar linked to Tapia and Toviggino to be guarded

The federal judiciary ordered the protection of the luxurious estate in Villa Rosa, Pilar, identified as part of an alleged money laundering scheme linked to AFA president Claudio "Chiqui" Tapia and his treasurer, Pablo Toviggino. The measure was issued by Judge Daniel Rafecas, who instructed the Federal Police to station officers at all entrances to identify those entering or leaving and to record vehicles or goods moving from the premises. The objective: to prevent possible evidence from being tampered with while it is determined which jurisdiction will retain the case.

The case, initiated after a complaint by Elisa Carrió and leaders Matías Yofe and Facundo del Gaiso, became entangled in a jurisdictional dispute. Rafecas referred it to the Economic Criminal Court, considering that no public officials were involved, but Judge Javier López Biscayart also declared himself incompetent and returned the case. The Federal Chamber must decide this week where the investigation will be based.

Meanwhile, prosecutor Ramiro González promoted a series of measures aimed at determining who the real owners are of the mansion of over 105,000 square meters (over 1,130,210 square feet), equipped with a horse training track, stables with Arabian and thoroughbred horses, a heliport, and—according to the complaint—up to 120 collector cars, several of which are registered in Santiago del Estero, Toviggino's home province.

The property is registered under the company Real Central SRL, whose responsible parties would be Luciano Nicolás Pantano and Ana Lucía Conte. According to the complainants, both lack the financial standing compatible with the property. Pantano, former president of the Argentine Futsal Association and former treasurer of Almirante Brown, is registered as a self-employed taxpayer with an annual billing cap of $40 million and recent bank debts. Meanwhile, Conte was a self-employed taxpayer until 2012, received the IFE during the pandemic, obtained a retirement under PAMI, and only in 2022 registered as self-employed with declared monthly income of just $15,000, coinciding with her appearance as the majority shareholder of the company.

Given these inconsistencies, Rafecas ordered the lifting of both parties' banking and tax secrecy, requested suspicious transaction reports from the FIU, and analyzed whether they own other properties, vehicles, boats, or have relevant financial movements. He also asked the National Civil Aviation Administration to report whether the estate's heliport is authorized, something the Civic Coalition had already questioned.

The judge also ordered a thorough appraisal of the property's real value, for which he summoned the Court's Panel of Experts and the San Isidro Auctioneers' Association. Although the opposition demanded an immediate search, Rafecas did not authorize it, considering that there is still no sufficiently proven link between the owning company and the AFA leaders to warrant the search.

The police protection has remained active since Friday and will continue until the Chamber decides who will handle the case, which continues to accumulate elements that increasingly compromise the asset structure attributed to Tapia and Toviggino.