Argentine lawyer accused of robbery and murder fled to Qatar to support Messi at World Cup before he could be arrested in home country
- Diego Chacón was arrested by the Interpol in Doha, Qatar, on Thursday
- The 42-year-old attorney was wanted for a November 19 robbery in San Salvador de Juyjuy, Argentina, that left a warehouse worker dead and another wounded
- One of the workers was shot in the head and died at a hospital
- Authorities raided Chacón’s home November 29 and discovered while searching through his girlfriend’s phone that he was in Qatar to watch the World Cup
- The wanted lawyer also posted extensively about his trip on social media
An Argentine lawyer wanted in connection to the alleged murder of a warehouse worker during a robbery last month has been arrested in Qatar after fleeing there to support the South American nation’s World Cup soccer team.
Diego Chacón, 42, was taken into custody by Interpol agents in Doha on Thursday.
An agent with the Interpol office in Argentina told Clarín newspaper that the plan was to arrest Chacón at Lusail Stadium on Friday because he would be attending Argentina’s quarterfinal match against the Netherlands.
However, authorities were able to track down Chacón to an apartment complex where other Argentine soccer fans were staying. The internationally wanted lawyer posted extensively about his time in Qatar on social media.
‘What we know at the moment is that he didn’t resist arrest,’ the agent said.
Diego Chacón (pictured at the World Cup in Qatar) is an Argentine lawyer who is being accused of plotting a November 19 robbery at a warehouse in San Pedrito, Argentina, that left a worker dead and another with two gunshot wounds. The 42-year-old was arrested Thursday by Interpol agents in Qatar
Chacón (left) is said to have fled from Argentina Qatar and attended World Cup matches. Authorities in Argentina discovered his whereabouts after raiding his home and going through his girlfriend’s phone
Chacón is said to be the leader of a theft gang that targeted companies in the northwestern city of San Salvador de Jujuy.
He is accused of being the mastermind of the November 19 robbery attempt at the Mamprim and De La Torre warehouse in the town of San Pedrito.
The assailants asked for one of the owners and then escorted two workers to the locker room area. A struggled ensued and the workers were shot.
Javier Martínez, 31, was struck in the head and was rushed to a local hospital where he died.
Nicolás Montenovic was shot once in each leg and survived.
Interpol said that Chacón recruited four suspects and provided ‘information about the logistical, human, and commercial movements of a dairy product distributor.’
The international police organization said that he instructed them to equip themselves with firearms so that they could carry out the robbery.
Chacón fled his home country on November 29 on a flight that connected in Paris before landing in Doha to support Lionel Messi at the World Cup.
Diego Chacón, an Argentine lawyer wanted to a robbery of a warehouse in San Salvador de Juyjuy, Argentina, that ended with the November 19 murder of an employee was arrested Thursday in Doha, Qatar
La Nación newspaper reported that the police raided Chacón’s home that same day and later discovered that he attended several matches at the World Cup when they searched his girlfriend’s cellphone.
Chacón had sent his girlfriend several photos of him at the stadiums and also posted multiple photos on his Instagram account that showed him in the stands behind a large banner of Argentine soccer legend, Diego Maradona, which read, ‘The happiest days were and will be.’
Argentina is set to play the Netherlands on Friday, but Chacón will not be in attendance to see Messi take on Holland in one of the great World Cup rivalries.
His extradition to Argentina is pending.
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