Argentines Demand Justice After Brutal Murders of Young Women Livestreamed by Gang

Thousands gathered in Buenos Aires on Saturday to demand justice after the horrific torture and murder of three young women Lara Gutiérrez (15), and cousins Morena Verdi and Brenda del Castillo (both 20) in a case that has shocked Argentina.

The victims were lured into a van on September 19 under the pretense of attending a party, but were instead abducted, tortured, and killed an attack authorities say was orchestrated by a drug gang to punish them for allegedly violating gang rules. The killings were livestreamed on social media as a chilling warning.

Five suspects three men and two women have been arrested, but the alleged ringleader, a 20-year-old Peruvian man, remains at large, according to National Security Minister Patricia Bullrich. A video recovered during questioning shows a man saying, “This is what happens to those who steal drugs from me.”

The bodies were discovered buried in a property in a southern suburb of Buenos Aires, five days after the victims went missing.

At the protest, grieving relatives marched to Parliament, calling for stronger protections for women and tougher action against gang violence. Brenda’s father, Leonel del Castillo, described the extent of the abuse as so severe he couldn’t recognize his daughter’s body. Her grandfather called the killers “bloodthirsty” and said, “You wouldn’t do what they did to an animal.”

Femicide remains a major issue in Argentina, with one woman killed by a man every 36 hours, according to a national monitoring group.