A former police officer has been arrested after a missing mother-of-two was found dead inside a suitcase. Bárbara Camila Aragón was reported missing by her family on Saturday (10 October). Her body was found in the early hours of Sunday (11 October) at a boarding house in Rosario, Argentina.
Discovery at boarding house
Officers found the 26-year-old in the kitchen of an upstairs flat, wrapped in a blanket and hidden inside a suitcase. Aragón's family, who are from Villa Gobernador Gálvez, began searching for her after losing contact with her.
A key piece of information came from a taxi driver who had taken her to the boarding house on Saturday morning. Minutes after dropping her off, he received a WhatsApp message from Aragón asking him to return and pick her up. He went back and repeatedly sounded his horn, but nobody responded, so he eventually left.
Arrest and background
During a search of the property, officers found a 37-year-old man in one of the upstairs flats and arrested him on suspicion of murder. The suspect, identified as Eliel S, had previously served in the Santa Fe police force before being dismissed following a drug-trafficking conviction.
In 2021, he was sentenced to six years in prison for belonging to an organisation involved in transporting cocaine from Rosario to Reconquista. In July 2024, he was also briefly detained while carrying clothing bearing police insignia and a replica firearm. Preliminary autopsy results indicated that Aragón died of asphyxiation.
Investigation and tribute
A mobile phone has been seized for forensic analysis as investigators work to establish what happened in the hours before her death. Aragón leaves behind two young children.
A friend paid tribute to her online, writing: "Barbara, you deserved to live, to watch your children grow up and to enjoy all the life you had ahead of you."
