Argentina's Federal Police (PFA) arrested a person in Mar del Plata during a nationwide operation targeting an alleged transnational money laundering network accused of using Las Vegas casinos to move illicit funds through accounts opened by Argentinian nationals.
The arrest took place during a raid on Avenida Libertad in Mar del Plata, one of 30 simultaneous operations carried out across Buenos Aires city, greater Buenos Aires, Rosario and the coastal city, according to Argentina's Federal Police (PFA).
Authorities said the organization allegedly recruited Argentinian citizens with valid US visas, covering travel expenses and paying fixed sums in exchange for opening bank accounts in the United States under their own names.
Prosecutors allege those accounts were later used to obtain casino credit lines and move funds through different sectors of the economy and offshore jurisdictions.
Investigators estimate that more than 200 individuals were recruited into the scheme. Recruiters allegedly received commissions of up to $7,000 for each person brought into the operation.
Judicial sources cited by local media identified Maximiliano Palermo and his father Juan Carlos Palermo as the alleged leaders of the structure. Those under investigation face accusations including criminal association, money laundering and customs-related offenses.
Former Argentinian footballers Sergio Berti, José Flores, Sergio Zárate and Norberto Ortega Sánchez were also named in the broader investigation, according to Argentine media reports.
Investigators also linked Juan Carlos Palermo to a separate 2023 case involving the transfer of gambling-related funds through Las Vegas casinos, according to Argentinian media reports. Prosecutors are now examining whether the previously detected operations shared financial structures, intermediaries or recruitment methods with the network targeted in the latest raids.
The investigation gained visibility after the February 2026 detention in the United States of Argentinian journalist Enrique Felman, who allegedly accumulated a $300,000 debt at Resorts World Las Vegas
