Facundo Astudillo Castro (23 August 1997 – disappeared 30 April 2020) was an Argentine citizen who went missing after being stopped by the police during the COVID-19 pandemic strict lockdowns in Argentina. He was hitchhiking from Pedro Luro to Bahía Blanca, when in the town entrance of Mayor Buratovich was stopped in a police checkpoint of circulation permits. His last known image, taken the day of disappearance, depicts him being held by the police for violating the lockdown, with his hands against the police vehicle number RO 23360. It was cataloged by the victim family as a Forced disappearance in hands of the Buenos Aires Provincial Police. This theory was also followed by human rights activist Estela de Carlotto. Nora Cortiñas, another known activist in Argentina, demanded the resignation of Sergio Berni, the Buenos Aires Province Minister of Security. The minister considered this an irresponsible request.
The UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances (OHCHR) demanded the Argentine government to be expedite and through in the investigation, as well as to take any possible hypothesis in consideration. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights also issued a precautionary measure. The President of Argentina, during a radio interview, stated: "We need to know what happened to Facundo. I want us to find him and, if someone was responsible for an illicit act, they will have to face the consequences".
The investigation started under the legal title of Whereabouts inquiry but then turned to a Forced disappearance investigation. In August, the involvement of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team in the investigation was required. His body remains were found on August 15, 2020, in an advanced state of decomposition, in an area between the cities of General Daniel Cerri and Villarino Viejo. The autopsy was done in the former ESMA in Buenos Aires, where the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team has its laboratory. 15 experts from different areas participated in the exam, which lasted for 10 hours. The autopsy report, published by the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, established the cause of death as drowning while the manner of death as an unnatural death, but it couldn't be established whether it was a result of homicide, suicide, or an accident. Algae matching the one sampled in the discovery place was found in the body.
Disappearance
On 30 April 2020, Facundo Astudillo Castro left his house in Pedro Luro to Bahía Blanca (both cities located in the Buenos Aires Province) to visit his ex-girlfriend, trying to get back together. At this time the country was under a strict lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, which required eligible persons to have a permit to travel, and punished those who violated the regulation. He did not have this permit, and traveled hitchhiking.
At around 13 hours, the young man called his mother, stating: "Mom, you have no idea where am I at, you'll never see me again".
On the same day, two Mayor Buratovich policemen intercepted the young man and made him a ticket for lockdown violation. The Astudillo family locates this at about 10 hours. As the police stopped him, they took his last known picture, which depicts him being held by the police for violating the lockdown, with his hands against the police pickup number RO 23360. A photo of his driver license was later taken.
He was later stopped at another police check for permits in the town entrance of Teniente Origone. Three witnesses claim to have seen Astudillo Castro around 3:30 p.m. in that area when two province policemen, in a Toyota Hilux pickup truck with its rear door open, supposedly stopped him and told him to get on. However, the prosecutor does not consider this enough grounds to establish that Facundo was kidnapped by the police, citing among other reasons than an officer (Alberto González) claims to have intercepted the disappeared young man around 26 kilometres further on Route 3 than what the location mentioned by the witnesses, and he took a picture of his driver's license (photo which is on record in the case file). This officer claims to have questioned Astudillo Castro, who told him he was en route to Bahía Blanca and did not have the circulation permit required. After becoming aware of this, the officer stated he radioed the Médanos police station about what to do, and he was told to let the young man go. In his statement, the police officer said that the young man kept on in a light grey Renault Duster Oroch.