Aníbal Gordon (died 13 September 1987) was an Argentine suspected of being a leader of the Triple A death squad, active in 1973–1976 against leftist Peronistas during the period of rule by the Peróns. He served as an agent of the

SIDE Side or Sides may refer to: Geometry * Edge (geometry) of a polygon (two-dimensional shape) * Face (geometry) of a polyhedron (three-dimensional shape) Places * Side (Ainis), a town of Ainis, ancient Thessaly, Greece * Side (Caria), a town of an ...

intelligence agency between 1968 and 1984."Quién fue Aníbal Gordon" (Who was Anibal Gordon?)
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Clarin Clarin or Clarín may refer to: Geography *Clarin, Bohol, a municipality in the province of Bohol, Philippines * Clarin, Misamis Occidental, a municipality in the province of Misamis Occidental, Philippines *River Clarin, a river in Ireland Media ...

'', 14 October 1999 His activities extended into the period of the

Dirty War The Dirty War ( es, Guerra sucia) is the name used by the military junta or civic-military dictatorship of Argentina ( es, dictadura cívico-militar de Argentina, links=no) for the period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983 as ...

against the political opposition, conducted by the juntas, which ruled from 1976 to 1983. He was also involved with the kidnappings of businessmen in the 1980s by the

Puccio family The Puccio family was an Argentine criminal family. Three of the Puccios were convicted of four kidnappings and three murders in the early 1980s. Background The family, which comprised father Arquímedes Puccio, mother Epifanía Calvo, and five ch ...

gang. After his arrest in January 1984, on charges of a 1983 kidnapping, Gordon was later charged with several political murders and kidnappings. He was convicted of three murders of political dissidents committed in 1973–1974, and sentenced in 1986 to 16 years in prison. He died of lung cancer in 1987.

Background

Aníbal Gordon was born in Colón to an Argentine family of Scots descent. He started getting in trouble from an early age. He developed a business of commercial displays for plastics and metals, which was used in the beginning to finance his other activities. He hired numerous young men, typically about age 19, who became a gang. His police record noted various criminal offenses between 1951 and 1972, including armed robbery. In 1971 he had sent his crew to Ezeiza to take weapons off a plane. They also filled several drums with

naphtha Naphtha ( or ) is a flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixture. Mixtures labelled ''naphtha'' have been produced from natural gas condensates, petroleum distillates, and the distillation of coal tar and peat. In different industries and regions ' ...

, which Gordon sold undercover to other airfields. He began working as an agent of SIDE, and was with them between 1968 and 1984. Freed from jail in 1973, he allegedly engaged in racketeering, and kidnappings and assassinations on behalf of the government. In the 1980s, he was working with groups of the extreme right to destabilize the new democratic government of

Raul Alfonsín Raul, Raúl and Raül are the Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Galician, Asturian, Basque, Aragonese, and Catalan forms of the Anglo-Germanic given name Ralph or Rudolph. They are cognates of the French Raoul. Raul, Raúl or Raül may r ...

. Gordon was arrested in the mountains of Córdoba Province in January 1984. He was first charged with the kidnapping of activist Guillermo Patricio Kelly, which had taken place on 24 August 1983. Other charges were later made against him. He was convicted in 1985 of executing the murders of labor leader José Rucci in 1973, and

Silvio Frondizi Silvio Frondizi (January 19, 1907 — September 27, 1974) was an Argentine intellectual and lawyer, brother of President Arturo Frondizi and of the philosopher Risieri Frondizi. He became active in leftist groups, and was assassinated in 197 ...

, a professor and brother of the President, and Rodolfo Ortega Peña in 1974, all during the period of Triple A. In the 1980s, he also was involved with the

Arquímedes Puccio Arquímedes Rafael Puccio ( Barracas, Buenos Aires, 14 September 1929 – General Pico, La Pampa, 4 May 2013) nicknamed "The crazy sweeper (in Spanish: ''El loco de la escoba'')" was an Argentinian accountant, lawyer, whose leading members were convicted in 1985 of four kidnappings of businessmen in the 1980s. Puccio, his son and ex-rugby player Alejandro Puccio, Gustavo Contepomi, and retired Coronel Rodolfo Victoriano Franco were among others convicted in the gang. They were sentenced to life in August 1985."Kidnap gang leader dies at 84"
''Buenos Aires Herald'', 3 May 2013, accessed 2 July 2013 At the time of Gordon's death in prison in 1987, the former intelligence agent had been charged in several kidnappings and murders. Gordon always denied being part of the Triple A. He acknowledged having worked during the

in the secret detention center of the Automotores Orletti, where interrogation under torture and executions were performed under the military dictatorship (''El proceso'') (1976–1983). Gordon was sentenced October 1986 to sixteen years of prison. He died in jail from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malign ...

, on 13 September 1987.Special investigation: "Aníbal Gordon y sus actividades" (Anibal Gordon and his activities)
''Semanario Colón'', 28 July 2000

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Anibal 1987 deaths Argentine people of Scottish descent Operatives of the Dirty War People of the Secretariat of Intelligence Argentine prisoners and detainees Deaths from cancer in Argentina Deaths from lung cancer Argentine anti-communists Year of birth missing Argentine people convicted of murder People convicted of kidnapping Argentine spies Prisoners and detainees of Argentina Prisoners who died in Argentine detention People from Entre Ríos Province