Corrientes trial probes disappearance of 5‑year‑old Loan Peña

A federal oral trial in Corrientes, Argentina, is examining the disappearance of 5‑year‑old Loan Peña, who vanished on 13 June 2024 during a family lunch in the rural area of El Algarrobal. Grandmother Catalina Peña testified that the child did not die in an accident and accused her daughter, Laudelina Peña, of fabricating the accident story after three men allegedly pressured her to do so. Prosecutor Tamara Pourcel argued that the football‑boot evidence linked to the boy was likely planted by Laudelina to mislead investigators.

Other witnesses added further details. Camila Núñez, wife of a cousin, presented a photo she took of Loan shortly before his disappearance and denied any accident scenario. Macarena Peña, Laudelina’s daughter, said lawyer José Codazzi instructed her mother to lie about an accident and gave her money. Testimony also mentioned a hooded man seen by the boy’s maternal uncles and identified several accused participants, including Bernardino Antonio Benítez, Victoria Caillava, Carlos Pérez, Daniel Ramírez and Mónica Millapi. The prosecutor warned that procedural delays could extend the trial until at least December.