Overview
- A video that circulated over the weekend shows two 18‑year‑old students identified as Bautista Bravo and Imanol Santerre attacking and killing a coipo while one filmed and both later shared the footage.
- Fundación Grupo Alianza Animal filed the initial criminal complaint and the Municipality of Bahía Blanca joined as a particular complainant to push the investigation forward.
- The case is with the Fiscalía Especializada en Delitos por Maltrato Animal under prosecutor Santiago Garrido, who ordered seizures of the suspects’ phones to obtain original footage and messages.
- Municipal Zoonosis teams had tried to locate and rescue the coipo days earlier and authorities were unable to recover the body for a necropsy, which limits physical forensic evidence.
- Local officials and activists have demanded sanctions including declaring the accused non gratos and university discipline, while prosecutors are exploring charges under the animal cruelty law (Ley 14.346) and wildlife protection rules that could raise possible penalties.