The Sentence
A San Isidro juvenile court on Tuesday set 15-year prison terms for the two young men convicted of killing businessman Andrés Blaquier during a 2022 robbery on the Panamericana highway. The judges Alejandro Flori, Silvia Chomiez and Silvina Coto, of the Juvenile Criminal Responsibility jurisdiction, applied the maximum allowed under Argentina's new Juvenile Criminal Responsibility Law. The two had been found guilty in October 2023, but their sentences were pending until this hearing.[S1][S2][S3][S4]
The two were convicted of aggravated robbery with a firearm resulting in serious injuries, in concurrence with aggravated homicide for the purpose of impunity and committed with a firearm, against Blaquier and his wife Magdalena De Elordy, who suffered a knee fracture. One of the defendants also faced charges of armed robbery and concealment of a stolen vehicle. The family's lawyer, Ramiro Salaber, said they would not appeal the sentence.[S1][S3]
The family had sought 25-year sentences and argued the new law was unconstitutional, while the defense requested 10 years. Under the previous legal framework, life imprisonment for minors had been barred since 2005, when the Supreme Court ruled it violated international treaties, but no fixed cap existed. The new law, which took effect on October 5, lowered the age of imputability from 16 to 14 and set a maximum of 15 years for anyone under 18 at the time of the crime, regardless of the offense or number of acts.[S1][S4]
The Crime
The killing occurred on October 29, 2022, at 6:54 p.m., when Blaquier, 62, was riding a black BMW 1200 motorcycle northbound on the Panamericana highway at kilometer 50 in Pilar, accompanied by his wife. Two assailants on a green Kawasaki Z400 cut them off and one shot Blaquier in the chest with a 9-millimeter pistol. Both victims fell from the motorcycle; the shooter took the BMW and fled, but crashed 10 kilometers away and abandoned the motorcycle on the asphalt.[S1][S2][S3]
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Blaquier received ambulance assistance but arrived at the hospital without vital signs, having suffered hypovolemic shock from blood loss and heart wounds. His wife also fell and sustained fractures. On November 8, police arrested the two suspects in raids in Garín, where they also seized the weapon used in the crime, clothing similar to that seen in videos, and the Kawasaki Z400. One suspect had sought medical care at a Garín hospital for injuries from the escape, where a doctor recognized him.[S1][S2][S3]
In mid-2023, while awaiting trial, the older suspect, then 17, escaped from the juvenile detention center and remained a fugitive for a month before being recaptured. The trial ended on October 9, 2023, at the Juvenile Criminal Responsibility Court No. 1 of San Isidro. After the verdict, De Elordy said she felt at peace and trusted the justice system, surrounded by hundreds of supporters on the Panamericana service road. The court ordered the convicted to remain in a closed regime with maximum security.[S1][S2]
Reactions and Next Steps
Salaber criticized the new law's 15-year cap, saying it applies regardless of the crime or number of offenses. He said the family would not appeal but hoped the sentence would be served fully and that the convicted would not be granted parole or temporary releases, citing the gravity of the crimes and behavioral problems in prison. The new Juvenile Criminal Regime allows conditional release after two-thirds of the sentence if legal requirements are met, but misconduct records could complicate access, subject to judicial evaluation.[S1][S3][S4]
During the hearing, the two convicted, who are cousins, asked to speak and apologized for what happened, but the Blaquier family did not consider the apologies sincere. Both have now turned 18 and are held in adult prisons under the young adult regime, which includes inmates up to 21. The case has drawn attention to the balance between juvenile justice and public safety in Argentina.[S4][S1]
