Who Killed Sara: Why Chema Burns His VHS Tapes (Is It A Plot Hole?)

In Who Killed Sara? season 1, Chema burns his VHS tapes from the summer of Sara’s accident, turning him into a possible suspect – but while season 2 never directly addresses this potential plot hole, there is evidence to suggest why he burned them. The Netflix drama jumped to the top of the charts after its explosive first season, which left fans with many unanswered questions.

Who Killed Sara? revolves around the mystery of what happened to Sara Guzman, her brother Alex’s investigation into her death, and the Lazcano family’s potential involvement. José María Lazcano – aka Chema – is the middle child of César and Mariana Lazcano. During the weekend when Sara had her accident, Chema was constantly recording their time at the beach house. Remembering this, Alex asks Chema to look for them, believing there may be some evidence about Sara’s killer on the tapes. Instead, Chema immediately destroys the tapes, burning them in a fire.

While Rodolfo Lazcano was supposedly Alex’s best friend, as Who Killed Sara?‘s story progresses, it’s revealed that it’s Chema who truly cares for him. That’s why it’s so surprising that he burned the VHS tapes that could have helped catch Sara’s killer. Part of a whodunit-style murder mystery is that everyone is seen as a suspect at one point or another, and by burning the VHS tapes, Chema was added to the potential list of suspects. But this turned out to be a red herring. While the fact that he destroys evidence initially makes Chema look guilty, there’s actually another motive behind his decision; he’s still in love with Alex.

Although Alex does turn out to care deeply for Chema – which is clear in season 2 when he tells Chema that he will always be his family – Alex can never return Chema’s feelings in the same way. And there’s a part of Chema who realizes this after Alex confronts him about the tapes. This is most likely why he burns them. It’s also possible that Chema destroys the tapes in Who Killed Sara? season 1 because they prove that, not only was he in love with Alex, he also secretly recorded Alex without his knowledge numerous times throughout the summer. And he kept the tapes for nearly two decades. A fact that he likely doesn’t want Lorenzo to know. At the time when he burns the tapes, he and Lorenzo are trying to work on their relationship. Chema’s decision to get rid of the VHS tapes may have been his way of attempting to find closure and move on from Alex and any residual feelings he still had for him.

Burning the tapes doesn’t work, though; this is clear from Chema’s decision to take the fall for a murder he didn’t commit in season 2. In the end, Chema sacrifices himself in order to save Alex from going to jail again because, despite the fact that Alex can never truly return his feelings, Chema will always be in love with him. Something he finally admits to Alex in the Who Killed Sara?season 2 finale.

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