Argentina launches FBI-style federal investigations agency
June 26 (UPI) -- President Javier Milei has approved the creation of the Federal Investigations Department (DFI), a strategic step aimed at transforming the Argentine Federal Police (PFA) into a specialized federal criminal investigation agency.
The department's primary mission is to lead investigations into drug trafficking, organized crime, human trafficking, financial crimes and terrorism, replacing routine patrols with specialized investigative units.
National Security Minister Patricia Bullrich said Argentina needs a modern force with the real capacity to dismantle criminal organizations.
Bullrich said the DFI will be the core of the new federal police, which will no longer function as a uniformed force. It will be supported by state security and diplomatic protection services.
"It will focus all efforts on one key task: getting to the root of every criminal organization that seeks power and money in this country," she said.
The National Security Ministry will retain the National Gendarmerie, Airport Security Police and Federal Penitentiary Service as uniformed forces.
Bullrich said the new federal police will gradually become a force of detectives and specialized investigators serving the federal judiciary nationwide. She likened the DFI to the FBI.
The DFI will coordinate operations of the Superintendency for Drug Trafficking Investigations, the Federal Crimes Investigation Unit, regional and federal agencies, criminal intelligence units and other tactical support teams, including firefighters and Special Operations.
The DFI has been granted broad authority. One of its main roles is investigating drug trafficking networks in border provinces that have become major entry and exit points for large-scale shipments -- cocaine from Bolivia and marijuana from Paraguay.
Another priority is combating transnational organized crime groups, including Brazil's Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), Venezuela's Tren de Aragua and Italian and Russian mafias known to be active in Argentina.
A controversial provision allows the new force to monitor public digital spaces -- such as social media platforms and websites -- for preventive purposes. The new law governing the federal police provides a legal framework for investigating complex crimes, including technological surveillance, "while also guaranteeing respect for civil liberties and preventing abuses," the ministry said.
The department is also authorized to detain individuals for up to 10 hours to verify their identity if they cannot confirm who they are and are suspected of being wanted by the courts.
It is further empowered to launch investigations without prior court approval and will have access to both public and private databases.
The new law aims to professionalize both current and future personnel. Modeled after criminal intelligence agencies such as the FBI, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and counterparts in Israel and the European Union, the department is expected to recruit university graduates, IT specialists and criminologists.
Political opposition and human rights groups have criticized the reforms.
The Center for Legal and Social Studies (CELS) warned that the lack of clarity in many provisions could open the door to criminalizing social organizations, suppressing protests, conducting mass digital surveillance of dissenters, and taking law enforcement action without judicial oversight.
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