they believe they used recovering addicts to profit from their work

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A very serious suspicion centered on a well-known non-governmental organization (NGO) that, for several years, has been struggling to recover young people and adults who have fallen into the hell of drugs and addictions. A judge suspects that in different branches of the NGO Remar, the money obtained from the sale of products and furniture that recovering addicts produce and manufacture in workshops was allegedly used.

The suspicion is that it was allegedly a labor exploitation against hundreds of people in different parts of the country.

Hence, there is an investigation underway for alleged labor trafficking in persons, a federal crime that is punishable by law.

Gendarmerie reported that at least 403 people were “rescued” in the framework of some 32 raids carried out in the last few hours in different parts of the country.

Gendarmerie operation for alleged human trafficking for the purpose of labor exploitation. (Gendarmerie)

The procedures were carried out in Córdoba and in other provinces such as Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, Mendoza and San Luis.

For example, in the province of San Luis began the central case being carried out by federal prosecutor Cristian Rachid and supervised by Judge Juan Esteban Maqueda.

Sources with access to the case told La Voz that the investigation was initiated by a complaint from an alleged victim who worked or worked for that NGO.

There are at least seven people under judicial suspicion.

For now, the charges are unknown. Everything suggests that the accusation would be for human trafficking. In any case, it is not ruled out that there may be other crimes.

Simple human trafficking has a sentence of 4 to 8 years. However, human trafficking when consummated is aggravated. There, the sentence has a minimum of 8 years and goes up to 12 years.

“They have been delayed. From one moment to another the charges will be known. It happens that many interviews with the victims are being received and various procedures are being carried out,” said an informant. “There may be more involved,” added a source with knowledge of the investigation.

From the NGO Remar there is silence.

The consultations carried out to find out the version of those responsible for that center have not yielded results, for the moment.

Gendarmerie operation for alleged human trafficking for the purpose of labor exploitation. (Gendarmerie)

worst suspicion

Despite the secrecy of the summary, it emerged that the central hypothesis is that various managers of the NGO under suspicion have taken advantage, for a long time, of the work carried out by addicts and addicts in recovery, as part of their therapeutic treatment to get away from drugs. In this framework, always according to the suspicion of the prosecution and its investigators, the money or the usufruct of what was obtained from the sales of the manufactured products ended up in a few hands.

Since last Tuesday, various raids have been carried out at Remar headquarters and at the private homes of several of its managers, according to reports. There were also procedures on farms.

In Córdoba there were raids in Guiñazú, Río Ceballos, Salsipuedes, Río Cuarto and Las Higueras, among other places.

In order not to frustrate the investigation, there were several dozen raids in other provinces.

The Gendarmerie indicated that they proceeded to “rescue 403 alleged victims of human trafficking for the purpose of labor exploitation, being adult men and women, as well as minors.”

money and cell phones

In parallel, notebooks, computers, cell phones, cash and other items of interest to the cause were seized.

The money seized was at least 1,919,520 Argentine pesos, 9,140 US dollars. It is suspected that as more procedures are carried out, more cash is likely to be seized.

Judge Maqueda ordered the prohibition of leaving the country for seven people and that they do not approach the raided places or have contact with relatives of the victims.

In parallel, it ordered that the victims remain in charge of a rescue and accompaniment program of the Ministry of Justice of the Nation.

“Nonprofit”

On its website, Remar reports that it is a “non-profit” NGO and with people dedicated “entirely to humanitarian aid” who, for the most part, “have first been helped to get out of precarious situations and who decide to help to others who are in an emergency situation.

It was indicated that the network has community centers for men and women that carry out “detoxification” work. “Remar has created more than 1,200 small and medium-sized companies,” it was indicated and it is pointed out that there are workshops where products are manufactured for sale.