We killed her, boss. The guy just told me.
En las primeras horas del 26 de octubre, una mujer de 81 años fue torturada y asesinada en su hogar de San Isidro mientras cuatro hombres la despojaban de sus pertenencias. Lo que distingue este crimen de tantos otros no es solo su brutalidad, sino su arquitectura: los cerebros de la operación no estaban en la calle, sino en una celda de la prisión de La Matanza, coordinando el asalto en tiempo real a través de WhatsApp. El caso de María Susana Rodríguez Iturriaga revela cómo la tecnología ha borrado los muros que alguna vez separaban el encierro del crimen, convirtiendo cada teléfono en una extensión del poder delictivo.
- Dos reclusos condenados por crímenes previos dirigieron un asalto domiciliario desde su celda, enviando instrucciones y solicitando videollamadas mientras una anciana era atacada.
- Seis horas antes del crimen, cómplices filmaron un recorrido de 40 minutos por la casa de la víctima y lo enviaron a los atacantes como guía operativa.
- A las 12:23 de la madrugada, uno de los asaltantes escribió al líder preso: 'La matamos, jefe', desencadenando una respuesta de confusión que sugiere que el asesinato no estaba planeado.
- Los investigadores sospechan que la tortura fue transmitida en vivo durante la videollamada que Sandoval mantuvo con los atacantes dentro de la casa.
- Dos sospechosos están detenidos, dos permanecen prófugos, y los menores que realizaron el reconocimiento previo aún no han sido identificados.
El 25 de octubre por la noche, cuatro hombres ingresaron a una vivienda en San Isidro. Para cuando se fueron, en la madrugada del 26, María Susana Rodríguez Iturriaga, viuda de 81 años, había sido atada, torturada y asesinada. Lo que debía ser un robo se convirtió en un homicidio coordinado desde adentro de una cárcel.
Thiago Sandoval y Hugo Isaías Castillo San Martín, conocido como 'Castillito', ambos recluidos en La Matanza por crímenes anteriores, dirigieron la operación vía WhatsApp. Sus ejecutores en la calle eran Miguel Ángel Viera, de 47 años, y Julio Emiliano, de 20, entre otros aún no identificados. La planificación fue meticulosa: seis horas antes del asalto, otros integrantes de la banda filmaron un recorrido de 40 minutos por la propiedad, mostrando el camino desde el portón hasta las estructuras del fondo. El video fue enviado a los atacantes para que supieran exactamente adónde ir. Un vecino notó a dos personas sospechosas saliendo de la casa esa tarde, pero no lo reportó. Los investigadores creen que eran menores.
Durante el robo, que duró dos horas, Sandoval exigió una videollamada y fotos de la caja fuerte vacía. A las 12:23, uno de los hombres le escribió: 'La matamos, jefe'. La respuesta desde la celda fue de desconcierto, como si intentara deshacer lo ocurrido con palabras. Minutos después, el mismo atacante le pedía a Sandoval que le llamara un auto para escapar, preguntando: '¿Me vas a dejar morir?'
El fiscal Patricio Ferrari concluyó que el asesinato no formaba parte del plan original. Sin embargo, la evidencia sugiere que la tortura pudo haber sido transmitida en vivo durante la videollamada. Las exigencias de fotos y video en tiempo real, mientras una anciana atada era agredida, revelan una operación que había trascendido el robo para convertirse en algo más oscuro.
Dos hombres están detenidos; dos permanecen prófugos. Los reclusos han sido imputados como partícipes necesarios. El caso expone con crudeza la capacidad de la Banda del Millón para dirigir crímenes violentos desde el interior de las prisiones, usando tecnología cotidiana con consecuencias letales.
On the evening of October 25th, four men entered a house on General Justo José de Urquiza in San Isidro. By the time they left, in the early hours of October 26th, an 81-year-old woman was dead. María Susana Rodríguez Iturriaga had been tied up, tortured, and killed during what was supposed to be a robbery—one coordinated not from the street, but from inside a prison cell.
The operation had been planned with precision. Two inmates, Thiago Sandoval and Hugo Isaías Castillo San Martín (known as "Castillito"), both serving time for previous murders and robberies, directed the assault from La Matanza prison using WhatsApp. They sent instructions to four men on the outside: Miguel Ángel Viera, 47, and Julio Emiliano, 20, along with two others not yet identified. The planning went further than just messages. Six hours before the robbery began at 10 p.m., other gang members filmed a 40-minute video walkthrough of Rodríguez Iturriaga's home, showing the route from the front gate through the patio to the back structure. The video was sent to Viera and Julio so they would know exactly where to go and what to expect. A neighbor noticed two suspicious people leaving the house that afternoon but did not report it. Investigators believe they were minors.
What happened next was captured in real time through the phones of the men involved. Sandoval, watching from his cell, asked for a video call during the attack itself and demanded photos of the empty safe once they had emptied it. The robbery took two hours. At 12:23 a.m., one of the men sent a message to Sandoval: "We killed her, boss." The response from the prison was confusion. "No, say the motorcycle doesn't work," Sandoval replied, as if trying to rewrite what had just been done. The man on the street repeated the message: "We killed her, boss. The guy just told me." Three minutes later, the same attacker asked Sandoval to call him a ride-share car to escape. When no response came immediately, he wrote: "Are you going to let me die?" Eventually, they arranged transportation.
Fiscal Patricio Ferrari, investigating the case, has concluded that the killing was not part of the original plan. The messages show Sandoval's shock at learning she was dead. Yet the evidence also suggests the violence may have been livestreamed. During the video call between the men inside the house and Sandoval in his cell, which lasted several minutes, investigators suspect the attackers may have filmed the torture the woman endured. Sandoval's demands for photos and video during an active assault on a bound elderly woman point to a criminal operation that had become something darker than a simple theft.
Two men are in custody. Two remain at large. The two prison inmates have been charged as necessary participants in the crime. The investigation continues, with authorities still working to identify the minors who conducted the reconnaissance and the other gang members involved. What remains clear is that the Banda del Millón has demonstrated the ability to run coordinated violent crimes from inside prison walls, using modern technology to direct street-level operations with lethal consequences.
Citações Notáveis
We killed her, boss— Gang member to imprisoned leader Thiago Sandoval via WhatsApp
No, say the motorcycle doesn't work— Thiago Sandoval's response from prison, attempting to create a cover story
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why would someone in prison risk sending a video walkthrough of a target house? That seems like it would leave a trail.
It does leave a trail—that's how we know about it now. But in the moment, they probably thought the phones were secure enough, or that the risk was worth it. They needed the men on the street to know the layout. A mistake in the dark could cost them the robbery.
The message "we killed her, boss" followed by confusion from Sandoval—does that suggest he really didn't want her dead?
The messages suggest that. His response was "no, say the motorcycle doesn't have"—like he was trying to create a cover story, to undo what had happened. But that doesn't mean he wasn't responsible. He was directing the operation. What matters is that someone died during a crime he was orchestrating.
Why would they ask for a video call during the robbery itself?
Control. Sandoval wanted to see what was happening, to make sure they were doing it right, to watch for problems. And maybe to watch the violence itself. The video call during the assault, combined with his demand for photos of the safe—it suggests he wanted documentation of what they were doing.
The neighbor saw two people leaving the house that afternoon but didn't call the police.
That's the gap between what people notice and what they act on. She saw something odd enough to remember it, but not odd enough to report. By the time she understood what it meant, it was too late.
What does it mean that the gang can run operations from inside prison?
It means the prison isn't actually containing them. They have phones, they have communication, they have people on the outside who take orders. The walls don't matter if you can still direct violence from your cell.