A beauty queen who grabbed a lift from her drug-dealer boyfriend to visit a local boutique is facing a lengthy jail term after the car turned out to be acting as a lookout for a cannabis smuggling run.
The verdict was delivered by the Federal Oral Court No. 1 in the city of Salta, in Salta Province, northern Argentina, on 10th March.
Martina Oliva, known locally as “Miss Oran”, was convicted alongside her former partner, Joaquin Tolaba, over the transport of 15 kilogrammes (33 pounds) of marijuana from the border area of San Ramon de la Nueva Oran to the provincial capital of Salta.
Prosecutors said Oliva had been travelling with Tolaba in a Toyota vehicle acting as a so-called “lead car”, driving ahead of another vehicle carrying the drugs in order to spot police checkpoints and warn the car behind.
The tribunal, presided over by Judge Maria Alejandra Cataldi with judges Gabriela Catalano and Marta Liliana Snopek, found both defendants guilty after analysing evidence gathered during the investigation and trial.
During the final hearing, Tolaba declined to address the court, while Oliva insisted she was innocent, telling judges she had simply been accompanying her partner on a trip to open a clothing shop.
She also claimed that bank transfers examined during the investigation had been carried out at the request of her boyfriend.
The case centres on an operation carried out on 5th February 2025 when authorities intercepted the Toyota vehicle in which Oliva and Tolaba were travelling as the suspected “lead car” for another vehicle transporting drugs.
Police then launched a pursuit of a Citroen C3 believed to be carrying the narcotics after it fled along National Route 34 before turning onto Provincial Route 112 towards Jujuy.
During the chase, suspects allegedly threw packages of marijuana from the vehicle before it eventually crashed in a grassy field on a rural property known as San Juan de Dios near the provincial border.
Investigators later recovered around 15 kilogrammes of marijuana linked to the trafficking operation.
Prosecutors said the group regularly transported drugs from the border area to Salta city, where the shipments were delivered to a residence belonging to Jose Burgos, identified as a buyer who supplied the local retail drug trade.
According to investigators, Burgos paid around ARS 6 million (GBP 3,210) for each delivery received from Tolaba.
Five other members of the network had already been convicted earlier after admitting their roles in the operation.
Benjamin Delgado received seven years in prison for aggravated drug transport and resisting arrest, Jose Burgos was sentenced to five years for possession of narcotics with intent to distribute and declared a repeat offender, and Roberto Carlos Leiton was given four years for aggravated transport and resisting arrest.
Juan Romero received six years for aggravated drug transport and resisting arrest. While Angela Cuenca was convicted for her role in organising the transport but was allowed to serve her sentence under house arrest. Because she is responsible for three minor children, one of whom has a disability.
Prosecutors Eduardo Villalba and Florencia Altamirano said the investigation linked the organisation to at least 31 suspected drug transport trips between October 2024 and January 2025.
The court will determine the final prison terms Oliva and Tolaba must serve at a later hearing.
