![]() Six years earlier, three armed men had broken into another bank, in another town north of Buenos Aires, called Ramallo. Martina: Officers at the scene were under tremendous pressure to get the hostages out safely and quickly. Era un lugar bastante protegido y seguro. La mayoría de los casos era por robos en las calles, pero sin armas. Officer M.: En esos tiempos, no había muchos crímenes serios en Acassuso. He was in charge of 80 agents, and this robbery was his responsibility. now led the Investigations Division in Acassuso and the surrounding area. His words will be read by a voice actor.Īfter decades of making his way up the ranks, Officer M. He's asked to remain anonymous for this series, so we'll call him: Officer M. Martina: Among the 300 agents swarming the streets of Acassuso that day was a 25-year veteran of the Buenos Aires police force. Es un lugar muy diferente a la capital, donde yo vivía y trabajaba. En general, hay casas enormes de dos pisos con jardín y piscina. Rodolfo: Acassuso es un barrio de gente de clase media y media alta, muy seguro y tranquilo. It's the kind of place where crime seems like something that happens elsewhere. It was in the center of Acassuso, a wealthy residential neighborhood north of Buenos Aires.Īcassuso's broad avenues are flanked by trees, manicured gardens, and large townhouses. Martina: Minutes after the call came in that a robbery was in progress, police raced to get to the bank. Keep an ear out for the Argentine accent: in Argentina, LLs are pronounced "sh," as in "me shamo " and the Y sounds more like "sh", as in "sho." If you find the accent tricky, you can always skip back and listen again. Our storytellers will be using intermediate Spanish, and I'll be chiming in for context in English. You'll hear directly from the various people who reported on, investigated, and even committed this crime. Over the next six episodes, we'll be telling you the true story behind one of the most shocking robberies in Latin America, a sophisticated bank heist that took place in Argentina back in 2006 but continues to captivate people to this day. Martina: It was too early for María and Rodolfo to realize it…but one of the most spectacular robberies in the history of Latin America was already underway.īienvenidos and welcome to El gran robo argentino - The Great Argentine Heist, a special serialized season of the Duolingo Spanish Podcast. Esto era diferente, ya no parecía ser un robo normal. La seguridad de los rehenes era la prioridad de las autoridades. Rodolfo: ¡Trescientos agentes de policía estaban en el lugar! Eran agentes de las comisarías de la zona, de la provincia de Buenos Aires y del grupo de fuerzas especiales de la policía. Why was the hostage negotiation taking so long? Could this really be a story? Hours went by, and Rodolfo grew suspicious. Surely, this would not be real news.But this time the robbers had taken 23 hostages. Martina: Rodolfo and María knew this type of hostage situation was usually very brief and only involved a few people. Entonces, esto no era nada interesante para nosotros porque en general no iban más allá. Rodolfo: En ese tiempo, había muchos robos exprés que no duraban más de cinco minutos. Martina: At first, the robbery barely registered with Rodolfo. Estaban cometiendo un robo exprés en un banco. Something about a hostage taking, or una toma de rehenes. Suddenly, a breaking news alert on TV caught their attention. Martina: At noon that day, Rodolfo and María were both at their desks, getting ready for a meeting with their editor. Aunque muchas veces fue difícil y me tocó experimentar mucho machismo en ese mundo dominado por hombres. Yo llegué ahí casi por casualidad, pero aprendí a llevar la situación bastante bien. María: En esos tiempos no había muchas mujeres en el área. As the only woman on Perfil's crime beat, she always made sure to project confidence, to gain the trust of some of her more old-school, male colleagues. Like him, she had reliable sources in the Buenos Aires police and she knew a good story when she saw one. Martina: María Ripetta was the same age as Rodolfo. En mi sección, yo tenía una excelente relación de trabajo con mi compañera María Ripetta. He'd investigate a story for years if it meant getting to the bottom of it. He was so detail-oriented that, when covering a story, he would take note of how a room smelled, or the color of a person's shoes. It was the only job he knew, and he was made for it. Martina: At 29 years old, Rodolfo had already worked as a journalist for more than a decade. Cada historia que cubría representaba una nueva aventura para mí. Yo escribía para la sección de policiales y era mi pasión. Rodolfo: Eran mis primeros meses en ese periódico. ![]() But not Rodolfo Palacios, a reporter for a weekly paper that ran on Sundays called Perfil. ![]() It was the dog days of summer, and most of the city was on vacation. Martina: Friday, January 13th, 2006, was a scorching day in Buenos Aires, Argentina. ![]()
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