Aahana Swrup
In ‘Someone Has to Know,’ a young man seemingly vanishes from a popular nightclub on a night out that marks the beginning of an expansive investigation. After the disappearance of Julio Montoya Font, his family continues fighting for justice, attracting the attention of the entire nation. Nonetheless, even with a distinct department solely dedicated to investigating the missing person case, no results turn up. Meanwhile, a local priest, Father Andres, finds himself entangled in a moral dilemma when one of his parishioners enters the confessional.
The mysterious church-goer divulges the truth about Julio’s disappearance and even confesses to his murder. As a result, the clergyman, possibly the only one except the killer to know of their identity, grapples with the moral and theological implications of breaking the sacred secrecy of the confession. Since the Netflix Chilean series has a prominent basis in reality, Andres’ character and the complex role he plays in the criminal investigation inherently become a point of intrigue.
Andrés San Martín is the Real Priest Who Inspired the Character of Father Andres
‘Someone Has to Know’ is largely based on the true story of Jorge Matute Johns case, which revolved around the disappearance of the namesake victim in November 1999 from a club in Talcahuano, Chile. Years after his initial disappearance, in February 2004, Jorge’s remains were discovered in the Bíobío River, turning the investigation into a murder case. Over the years, although some developments have taken place, the perpetrator(s) behind the homicide still remain at large with no definitive answers about the nature of the victim’s demise.
In presenting the story of Jorge Matute Johns, the show fictionalizes parts of the narratives, changing names, details, and other elements to maintain some distance from the real-life tragedy. Even so, the criminal case and its framework remain notably grounded in reality. As a result, many of the characters, including Father Andres, retain a counterpart of some sort in real life. Father Andres finds a direct inspiration in Andrés San Martín, the real-life former priest who was involved in the Jorge Matute Johns case. In 2003, when Jorge’s case was still a missing person concern, Martin made a public announcement in the middle of a commemoration mass in which he declared that the young man was actually dead.
He then went on to share that he knew about the victim’s definitive end because the killer had shared the facts of the case with him during confession. Although Martin made this announcement to bestow some peace of mind to Jorge’s family, he refused to divulge any other details about the killer who allegedly confessed to him. Given the reverent nature of catholic confessions, the priest insisted on upholding the secrecy of the confession as was his duty as a confessor.
Later, in 2014, when the case was opened again, Martin went on to testify before the minister at the helm of the investigation, Jaime Solís Pino, for three hours. By then, he had already left the religious lifestyle for other reasons. Still, while he provided some other information, he also maintained his position of secrecy surrounding the identity of his parishioner. Thus, ultimately, even though the on-screen Father Andres diverges from reality at times, his character shares notable similarities to the real priest involved in Jorge’s murder investigation.
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