MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Tunnel under Montevideo’s historic district foils bank raid plot, raises regional crime links

Investigators described the tunnel as a purpose-built connection between the storefront and the sewer network, allowing the group to move underground toward its target

According to the Interior Ministry, the plot relied on a commercial premises leased in mid-2025, from which an access point was allegedly opened into the sewers to advance toward a nearby financial institution. The broader investigation began on September 11 with an anonymous tip about a suspected drug-selling point in Neptunia, in Canelones, and expanded as investigators tracked a network with logistical presence in Montevideo.

Interior Minister Carlos Negro said the planned heist, had it succeeded, could have carried systemic consequences. He told reporters it would have dealt “a hard blow” to Uruguay’s financial system and, by extension, the national economy, as quoted by local outlets.

Así trabaja la Policía Nacional en Ciudad Vieja, continuando las pericias en el túnel de la zona, en el marco de la operación Blindaje liderada por la DGRTID con apoyo de la Dirección General de Información e Inteligencia, la Dirección General de Operaciones Especiales, el Centro… pic.twitter.com/jnhQL0forQ

— Ministerio del Interior (@Minterioruy) February 4, 2026

Investigators described the tunnel as a purpose-built connection between the storefront and the sewer network, allowing the group to move underground toward its target. Footage released from the operation shows officers entering through an opening in the floor and moving through a narrow section before reaching a wider space.

Julio Sena, the National Police’s investigations director, said the suspects “could be linked to a transnational criminal group,” adding that some detainees appear to have experience with similar robberies in Brazil. Authorities are now awaiting cross-border checks. “Nothing guarantees the documents they carry are real,” Sena said, citing pending fingerprint and identity verification.

El País reported that investigators are weighing possible connections to Brazil’s First Capital Command (PCC), while stressing the hypothesis remains unconfirmed and depends on ongoing coordination with Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina.

The case led to raids in Ciudad Vieja and El Pinar (Canelones), with seizures including digging tools, surveillance equipment, a drone, vehicles and cash in multiple currencies. A court ordered 180 days of pre-trial detention; charges include criminal association and attempted aggravated theft, alongside drug-related counts in specific cases.