Irene Menendez Hastings

Irene Menendez Hastings is the deuteragonist of the 2009 Argentine film El Secreto De Sus Ojos (The Secret In Their Eyes). She is a wealthy upper-class person who helps Benjamín Esposito catch the murderer and rapist of Liliana Colotto de Morales.
She was potrayed by Soledad Villamil.
==Biography==
Irene, former head of Benjamín Esposito's department, and her love interest, meet again to investigate the case of Liliana's murder and rape. Esposito's rival, Romano, accuses two parsleys as those responsible for the murder, which enrages Benjamín who lashes out at Romano. Irene is in charge of stopping the fight between the two along with the other officers.
After a heated investigation, both Esposito and Pablo Sandoval, another investigating the case, finally manage to catch Isidoro Gómez, Liliana's murderer. At first Gómez refused to testify, however, when things didn't seem to be going anywhere, Irene shows up and starts making fun of Gómez, calling him a weakling and that a woman like Liliana was not going to be with an idiot like him. Given this, Gómez finally confesses that he raped and murdered Liliana, before attacking Irene and being taken away by the authorities.
However, due to the political situation that Argentina was going through at that time, being on the brink of a dictatorship, Romano finally frees Gómez from jail and hires him as a hit man, much to the bewilderment of Benjamín and Irene. Romano mocks Esposito, saying that he is nothing compared to Irene, before finally leaving the place.
Sandoval then sacrifices himself to save Benjamín, who was being wanted by the authorities. Seeing this, Benjamín decides to travel to Jujuy, saying goodbye to Irene, who had already fallen in love with him.
Twenty five years after Liliana's murder, it is discovered that Isidoro Gómez had been imprisoned by Ricardo Morales, the victim's husband, during all these years, remaining old and almost unable to speak, condemned to a fate worse than death. Given this, Esposito decides to leave the past behind forever, and decides to return to the office to meet again with Irene, who is surprised that Esposito. She tells him to close the door, which Benjamín does, symbolizing the closing of the case.
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