A package addressed to Nicolás Pino, the president of the Argentine Rural Society (SRA, by its Spanish acronym), inflicted minor injuries on his secretary and led to the evacuation of the influential agricultural organization’s offices on Thursday morning.
A video of the explosion, to which the Herald had access, shows an office worker approach and lean on what looks like a reception desk just as Pamela Sousa, sitting alongside a colleague, opened the letter bomb. All three jump, with Sousa leaping away as a small fire erupts underneath the counter, and the office is engulfed in a cloud of white smoke.
Aside from light bruising on Sousa’s hand, nobody was injured.
Buenos Aires City Police told the Herald that it’s the first time since its creation in 2017 that they’ve dealt with a letter bomb of this magnitude.
While business chambers such as the Argentine Agrarian Federation condemned the letter bomb, the SRA published a communiqué reassuring the public that the workers involved were in “perfect condition.”
“We must clarify that no one was injured, and the people who were in contact with the smoke were taken to an assistance center to get checked,” said the SRA press release.
The city’s Emergency Medical Assistance System (SAME, by its Spanish initials) took seven workers to the Fernández Hospital — all were confirmed to be safe and uninjured, aside from Sousa’s bruising.
City Police also reported that La Rural’s vice president Marcos Pereda Born, received a separate package almost simultaneously. However, it was confirmed to be harmless: nonetheless, police told the Herald it was destroyed and samples were taken for analysis.
The office, located in Palermo, and its surroundings were evacuated as the city’s bomb squad combed the area.
The Buenos Aires City Security Minister, Waldo Wolff, arrived at noon to assess the situation and told press that the explosion caused a loud noise and some debris to fall on the secretary’s desk.
“There’s no doubt the artifact was meant to cause an explosion,” Wolff said, adding that police found a battery and explosives inside.
Federal Judge Daniel Rafecas has been put in charge of the investigation: information on suspects and potential arrests remains classified.