Cargo plane carrying money crashes near Bolivia's capital, killing at
least 15 people, official says
[February 28, 2026]
LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — A cargo plane carrying money crashed
Friday near Bolivia’s capital, damaging about a dozen vehicles on
highway, scattering bills on the ground and leaving at least 15 people
dead and others injured, an official said.
Defense Minister Marcelo Salinas said the Hercules C-130 plane was
transporting newly printed Bolivian currency when it “landed and veered
off the runway" at an airport in El Alto, a city adjacent to the capital
of La Paz, before ending up in a nearby field. Firefighters managed to
put out the flames that engulfed the aircraft. |
Military police on the scene where a plane crashed in El Alto, Bolivia,
Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita) |
|
Fire chief Pavel Tovar said at least 15 people died but he did
not clarify if the dead were in the plane or in the cars on the
nearby highway.
Salinas did not specify how many people had been killed in the
crash and said the cause was being investigated.
Bolivian Air Force Gen. Sergio Lora said two of the plane's six
crew members had not been found as of late Friday, adding that
the aircraft was arriving from the eastern city of Santa Cruz.
Images on social media showed debris from the aircraft,
destroyed cars and bodies scattered on the road. According to
Tovar, at least 15 vehicles were damaged.
The plane, belonging to the Bolivian air force, was transporting
money to La Paz and images on social media showed people rushing
to collect the bills scattered at the crash site, while police
in riot gear tried to disperse them.
Tovar said the hundreds of people trying to collect the spilled
bills were hindering rescue efforts.
More than 500 soldiers and 100 police officers took control of
the area to disperse the mob, according to official reports.
Police and military personnel burned the cash boxes in the
presence of Central Bank President David Espinoza, who said the
bills “have no legal value because they never entered
circulation,” without clarifying what that meant.
Espinoza did not specify the amount of money being transported
but he said the banknotes had arrived in Santa Cruz from abroad.
Authorities temporarily suspended all flights to and from the
terminal.
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