Argentina’s Cabinet Chief under judicial scrutiny for hidden assets and questionable state tenders
The case comes amid a string of controversies surrounding Adorni since it emerged that his wife traveled aboard the presidential aircraft during a Javier Milei trip to the United States
Argentine Cabinet Chief Manuel Adorni is confronting a growing list of criminal complaints ranging from the alleged omission of real estate assets in his sworn financial disclosure to suspected irregularities in public contracts linked to Tecnópolis, a public state-owned fairground located in Buenos Aires.
According to cadastral records obtained by La Nación from the Buenos Aires provincial property registry, Bettina Angeletti — Adorni’s wife — has been the sole registered owner of a house in the Indio Cua Golf Club gated community in Exaltación de la Cruz since November 15, 2024. The property does not appear in the official’s public financial disclosure for that year, which listed a 115-square-meter apartment in Buenos Aires’s Parque Chacabuco, a 107-square-meter apartment in La Plata, savings of roughly 50,000 dollars and debts of around 90,000 dollars.
Argentine law requires officials to disclose their spouses’ assets, though that annex is classified and may only be released by the Justice Ministry or demanded by a court order. When contacted by La Nación, Adorni referred questions to his lawyer, who replied: The requested information is being investigated by the judiciary and is at its disposal. There are no statements to make regarding your questions.
The complaint was filed by lawmaker Marcela Pagano, a former member of the ruling La Libertad Avanza bloc. In her filing, Pagano stated that large-scale construction was undertaken on the lot after the purchase and estimated property values in the community range between 90,000 and 249,000 dollars, plus an admission fee of roughly five million pesos.
The case comes amid a string of controversies surrounding Adorni since it emerged that his wife traveled aboard the presidential aircraft during a Javier Milei trip to the United States and that the official himself flew on a private jet to Punta del Este during the carnival holiday accompanied by a journalist who hosts programs on state television — a department under Adorni’s authority. Federal judge Ariel Lijo is investigating the latter episode for potential bribery or illicit enrichment offenses.
A fresh complaint, also filed by Pagano, targets alleged irregularities in procurement by the Communications and Media Secretariat and in the concession process for the Tecnópolis grounds, valued at over 183.3 billion pesos. The filing flags corporate links among firms participating in mass-messaging service tenders awarded for more than 3.65 billion pesos, which could amount to simulated competition. The complaint also cites ties between the consultancy +Be, owned by Angeletti, and companies connected to one of the firms shortlisted for the concession.
Despite the accumulating allegations, President Milei publicly reaffirmed Adorni in his post. The Cabinet Chief posted a photograph alongside the president with an ironic caption dismissing reports of his departure.
