A growing number of Argentine police officers are taking on second jobs as rideshare drivers, often carrying their government-issued firearms, a trend that human rights groups say has led to an increase in deaths involving off-duty officers.
Economic pressures drive police to moonlight
Diego, a federal police officer who asked not to use his real name, said he works as a rideshare driver to supplement his income. “You can make around 44,000 pesos (about £24) in an extra eight-hour shift in the police or you can make 42,000 pesos worth of trips in four hours. It’s just maths,” he said. Many officers say their take-home pay, including extra shifts, often falls below the poverty line for a family of four, which the government has set at about $1,000 a month.
President Javier Milei's austerity measures have worsened the situation, with purchasing power declining despite a slow increase in economic activity. A female police officer from Buenos Aires province said, “I have many colleagues who do Uber, DiDi and deliveries after work. Our salaries are just too low, which also forces us to take loans, and we then live from loan to loan.”
Rise in off-duty shootings
According to data from the Centre for Legal and Social Studies (Cels), 75% of deaths caused by police officers using their issued firearms in 2025 occurred while the officers were off duty. About 13% of the total involved officers working as rideshare drivers at the time of the incident. This represents a marked increase from the past, with 16 cases recorded in 2025, up from two in 2020.
In February 2025, a 30-year-old police officer working as a rideshare driver shot two men who attempted to rob him in broad daylight while dropping off passengers in La Matanza, Buenos Aires. In December 2025, a federal police officer also working as a rideshare driver shot and killed a 15-year-old, claiming the teenager attacked him while a group of men circled the car. In another case, an officer with the Buenos Aires police force died after being shot by a passenger attempting to rob him; the assailant also died.
Gun policies under scrutiny
Both Uber and DiDi ban drivers from carrying firearms, but many police officers carry their government-issued guns at all times, a common practice in security forces. Victoria Darraidou, who coordinates security policy work at Cels, said, “Police officers kill and die more when they are off duty. This is because they use their guns without planning, with no support, and in disproportionate ways, and this puts other people and themselves at risk.”
María del Carmen Verdú, founder of the human rights organisation Correpi, said limiting when police can carry guns would reduce deaths. “If police officers were not allowed to carry their government-issued guns while they are off duty, the number of ‘trigger happy’ deaths would be significantly reduced,” she said.
Government stance and tensions
Milei expresses fervent support for security forces, but police complaints over pay and working conditions have increased, leading to a growing number of resignations. The administration has publicly praised officers who used force while off duty. In a high-profile case, police officer Luis Oscar Chocobar, convicted of homicide for excessive force in 2021, had his conviction annulled in 2024. Then security minister Patricia Bullrich defended him and broadened circumstances for police use of force. According to Cels, this contributed to a 40% increase in deaths at the hands of police in the last two years.
