Trial in killings of 3 foreign surfers in Mexico nears verdict
The trial of three men accused of killing two Australian brothers and their American friend during a 2024 surfing trip to Mexico has entered its final stage
ENSENADA, Mexico -- The trial of three men accused of killing two Australian brothers and their American friend during a surfing trip to Mexico in 2024 entered its final stage Thursday, in a case that raised concerns about the safety of tourists visiting the country.
Prosecutors in the Mexican state of Baja California and defense attorneys were expected to deliver closing arguments Thursday after a month of hearings. A judge is scheduled to announce a verdict Friday.
Martin and Debra Robinson, the parents of Australian brothers Callum and Jake Robinson, were expected to attend Thursday’s hearing. The brothers were killed along with their American friend, Jack Carter Rhoad.
The three men traveled to Baja California in April 2024 to surf near Punta San José, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the coastal city of Ensenada. They were reported missing shortly after arriving, and their bodies were found May 3 in a well near the area.
The Robinsons traveled from Australia to attend the trial, which began Sept. 7.
“I know they would want us to be here; they would do the same for us,” Martin Robinson said at the start of the proceedings.
Four people were arrested in connection with the killings, including Jesús Gerardo García, known as “El Kekas,” who prosecutors allege carried out the murders.
García’s former partner, Ary Gisell Silva Raya, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last November after pleading guilty to aggravated robbery and violent vehicle theft. Authorities said they found one of the victims’ phones in her possession.
García and two other defendants, Irineo Francisco and Ángel Jesús, chose to stand trial.
During testimony last month, Silva Raya told the court that García had confessed to approaching the surfers’ tent with a 9 mm handgun. She said the men threw their belongings at him in an attempt to fend off the attack and that one pleaded for his life.
Baja California Attorney General María Elena Andrade Ramírez said García allegedly tried to steal tires and other parts from the surfers’ pickup truck. Prosecutors believe he shot the men when they resisted and later concealed their bodies in a well.
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