The Matute Johns case is a Chilean criminal case concerning the killing of Jorge Eduardo Matute Johns, a young man from Concepción. He disappeared on 19 November 1999, and his remains were found on 12 February 2004 on the banks of the Biobío River, an event that shocked the country and made the case one of the most remembered criminal proceedings in Chile. The case was closed in 2010 without responsibility being established, but it was reopened in January 2014.
Background and disappearance
Jorge Matute Johns was born in Concepción in 1976 and studied at two schools in the city. He was last seen in the early hours of 20 November 1999 after leaving for a nightclub in Talcahuano with friends. The next day a friend reported that he had not met up with them, and the family soon received ransom demands of 50 million pesos. Early searches in San Pedro de la Paz produced no positive results.
Investigation and remains
The initial inquiry treated the case as a kidnapping and was reclassified several times, with several young people detained and later released. A police report in 2002 cleared those seven young people and pointed toward the nightclub's owner and staff. The remains were found in 2004 near the river, and the Servicio Médico Legal later confirmed that the death was caused by third parties. The case was closed in 2010, then reopened in 2014 after new evidence emerged.