La China, the mastermind behind the million-dollar fraud at UBA, has been caught.

In a recent operation,  the Federal Police arrested a woman nicknamed "La China,"  identified as the leader of a criminal organization that defrauded  the University of Buenos Aires for an amount exceeding 1.5 billion pesos.

The investigation revealed that the detainee played a key role in the scheme. According to police sources, she ensured the success of the illicit scheme by redistributing the funds into third-party accounts to then reinsert them into the financial circuit. This action allowed the origin of the money to be disguised and made it difficult to trace the fraud.

How the gang that defrauded UBA operated

The criminal network allegedly began its activities in September 2024, when its members impersonated Treasury staff of UBA. With this ruse,  they sent transfer orders through digital and physical means, using documents with forged signatures.

The criminals used a fake email account —tesoreria@ubatic.net.ar— to send the orders. In total, they managed to complete 13 transfers totaling 1.591 billion pesos. Additionally, they attempted to move another 341 million through three operations that were not completed.

The complaint was filed in October by authorities from the Law and Dentistry faculties.  This prompted the intervention of the Federal Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor's Office No. 8, under the direction of Eduardo Taiano, who delegated the investigation to the Police's Anti-Fraud Division.

Investigators carried out complex intelligence tasks: undercover surveillance, wiretaps, and follow-ups. They managed to identify 19 people who provided their bank accounts to channel part of the money.

Six people have already been arrested for the university fraud

The arrest of "La China" was added to five other arrests that had occurred weeks earlier. These individuals were accused of being part of an illicit association dedicated to creating shell companies and fake email accounts to facilitate fraudulent transfers.

All those involved are Argentine citizens, of legal age,  and face charges of illicit association and fraud. In the raids of February 2025, authorities seized key documents and arrested those who had central roles in the criminal structure.

Among them were those who  forged signatures, managed non-existent companies, and maintained operational links with the involved bank.

The investigation is ongoing, with the aim of unraveling the entire network and recovering the funds diverted from the assets of one of the country's most important educational institutions.