Caught ending explained: Who was the killer and is Leo dead?
Another Harlan Coben thriller is riding high on Netflix, and viewers are asking for a deep dive of the intense ending of Caught


If you want to delve thoroughly into the end of Netflix's Caught, or you still have questions about the final moments of the show, look no further - we look at everything that happened in the finale.
Based on the Harlan Coben novel of the same name, the six-part Netflix series Caught is the first Latin American adaptation of one of the author's best selling books. The Spanish language thriller which translates as Atrapados, joins a host of other Harlan Coben titles to make waves on the streamer.
If you were a fan of the likes of Missing You and Fool Me Once, it's likely you've also been gripped by Caught. Join us as we break down everything that happened in the show's finale, and take a look at any questions left unanswered - who really killed Martina, and what on earth is going on with Leo? Read on to find out what we know.
Caught ending explained
Towards the end of Caught, it transpires that Leo had been framed by his childhood friend, Marcos Brown, for online grooming and sexual abuse.
For context, as youngsters, the pair had broken into the home of one of Bariloche's most powerful families.
With Marcos' family locked into a land dispute with the Briguels, they went to the family's home to steal a badge they owned that could link Fran Briguel’s family to the Nazis, and use this evidence to bring the dispute to an end.
While carrying out their break-in, the pair were caught by a maid named Margarita. She'd suffered facial injuries as Leo and Marcos tried to escape, but had ultimately prevented Marcos leaving the premises.
Sign up for the woman&home newsletter
Sign up to our free daily email for the latest royal and entertainment news, interesting opinion, expert advice on styling and beauty trends, and no-nonsense guides to the health and wellness questions you want answered.
In return for keeping Marcos out of trouble for what he'd done, the Briguels insisted his family sell them their land. As an adult, Marcos had returned to Bariloche after losing his job, on a mission to get his family's land returned to him.
The land was now owned by Leo’s Fronteras Foundation and he wanted to keep it for the children, and even when Marcos tried to guilt trip Leo for not giving him up when he was caught robbing the Briguels, he still didn't want to return the land.
Marcos counteracted with Leo that he wanted to set up a trust for the foundation’s land. Wanting to liaise directly with Fran about this when Leo says no to his request, he took a flight to Buenos Aires to meet with him - Martina was on the same flight, also on her way to meet Fran.
If you're wondering how Martina and Fran knew each other, their acquaintance began when Martina started posting videos online. As her fan base grew and her videos became sexual in nature, Fran became one of the followers to send her money.
He'd arranged for her to fly to Buenos Aires to make a special recording just for him. She'd specified he could look but not touch during filming, but he broke this rule and she'd become inevitably upset.
Fran had then asked Marcos to step in and find somewhere for Martina to calm down. Martina tells Marcos she wants to involve the police, but he encourages her not to, instead insisting she keep the encounter between herself and Fran secret.
Martina reveals that she recognises Marcos - she remembered his connection to Leo because she's a neighbour of Juliana, Leo’s ex. Marcos uses this connection to once again try and regain his family's land.
To do this, he pretends to be a minor reporting abuse, anonymously emailing his story to Ema. He'd then used Martina to lure Leo to a late night meeting under well-meaning pretences.
Meanwhile, Marcos has set Leo up and when he arrives to meet Martina, Ema and her crew are waiting, convinced they've caught paedophile who’s been catfishing underage girls.
Ema arranges to meet Marcos to get his help in reporting Fran. While the pair are talking, Ema receives a call from Vicky with an important snippet of news - Marcos had always maintained he'd lost his job because the company he worked for scapegoated him. He'd actually been fired because they found out he was a genuine scammer.
Vicky also reveals that Leo's foundation’s land is no longer being auctioned off, it’s to be returned to its original owners - Marcos is the only surviving member of his family, and that would mean he'd get ownership of the land.
Acting quickly on this information, Ema begins recording her conversation with Marcos, asking questions including why he needed to frame Leo to take ownership of the foundation’s land.
She also asks if he killed Martina. Angered by this questions, Marcos reaches for a rowing oar and hits Ema over the head and tries to drown her in the lake just as she comes around.
Ema gets hold of a rock and hits Marcos in the head with it, buying herself enough time to get back on dry land and relocate her phone. With her phone found, Ema begins a live stream telling what she's found out about Marcos and revealing he tried to kill her.
Running from the scene, Marcos calls his wife to plead with her not to listen to anything she might be told about him before they've spoken in person. He then unbuckles his seatbelt, puts his foot down on the accelerator of the car he's driving, and crashes into a logging truck on purpose.
Who killed Martina?
It wasn't Marcos or Leo who killed Martina, as Ema finds out. Looking at photos of her on the night she disappeared, Ema recognises the wall drawings in of the pictures as belonging to Leo’s ex-girlfriend, Juliana.
She then finds out Juliana's teenage son Armando was the unknown figure captured leaving the party with Martina on a boat. After sleeping with Martina, Armando had found out about her part in the sting that had wrongly framed Leo.
Viewing Leo as a father figure, he'd fiercely argued with Martina over it which ended with Martina being accidentally pushed down the stairs and dying. Juliana had returned home to find Armando cradling Martina's body and helped him dispose of her body in the woods.
Juliana also plants incriminating evidence that Leo was the culprit. When Ema solves this piece of the puzzle, Juliana pleads with her not to inform the police, but is eventually forced to confess.
After seeing Leo shot by Facu and falling off a cliff, viewers might believe him to be dead. However, with no body to confirm his death, Ema is suspicious. It turns out she's right to be, because the closing moments of Caught see Leo alive and well.
After surviving the fall and reaching safety, he didn't want to return to his home town. Instead, he's seen with five other unknown figures riding around the Argentinian landscape on horseback. Viewers aren't told who these people are, or what they mean to Leo, as the show reaches its final conclusion.
Lucy is a multi-award nominated writer and blogger with seven years’ experience writing about entertainment, parenting and family life. Lucy worked as a freelance writer and journalist at the likes of PS and moms.com, before joining GoodtoKnow as an entertainment writer, and then as news editor. The pull to return to the world of television was strong, and she was delighted to take a position at woman&home to once again watch the best shows out there, and tell you why you should watch them too.
-
Chocolate brown is everywhere but Ranvir Singh's Reiss sale dress stands out from the crowd
Ranvir Singh has made us fall in love with deep cocoa brown all over again and her Reiss midi dress is more than 50% off
By Emma Shacklock Published
-
As a beauty editor who's tried hundreds of makeup brushes, these are the only five you need
Don’t waste money on unnecessary tools; from my decade of experience, these are the ones to own
By Victoria Jowett Published