Three men have been found guilty of murdering Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson and their American friend Carter Rhoad during a surfing trip to Mexico in 2024.
Jake Robinson was 30 years old, his brother Callum was 33, and Carter Rhoad was also 30. The three were camping in a remote beachside area in Baja California state when they were attacked in April 2024.
The court heard that the men were killed in an apparent botched robbery of their truck. Their bodies were later found in a clifftop shaft, with gunshot wounds to their heads. They had crossed into Mexico from the United States barely 36 hours before the attack. Their bodies were not discovered for another week.
The three defendants were identified only as Jesus Gerardo, Irineo Francisco and Angel Jesus, with their surnames withheld for legal reasons. Jesus Gerardo, known by the alias "El Kekas", was accused of leading the attack. The judge ruled that all three acted with premeditation.
The verdict was delivered on Friday at a court in the coastal city of Ensenada, where the trial had begun on 7 September.
Sentencing is scheduled for 16 October. The prosecution requested between 150 and 210 years' imprisonment for each of the accused, though the maximum sentence under Baja California law is 60 years.
The brothers' parents, Martin and Debra Robinson, travelled from Australia to attend the trial. Carter Rhoad's mother, Page, and his fiancee, Natalie Weirtz, participated via video link from the United States.
Debra Robinson testified on the final day of the trial. "They took our sons from our lives forever," she said. "What hurts us most is that, in their final hours, they were treated with such cruelty." She burst into tears when the guilty verdict was pronounced.
She also said the verdict, while significant, could not restore what had been lost. "I don't feel any different today as I did yesterday or I will tomorrow, because Callum and Jake are not here. A verdict is a good thing, but it doesn't bring them back."
On the three convicted men, she said: "I have tried to hold on to the memory of my children, my sons, and I try really not to think about them. And I don't actually want them to have any notoriety. We don't actually really speak their names. They're not part of our grief really."
Martin Robinson said the murders had devastated the family's vision of the future. "It's hard for a parent to lose a son, and we lost two sons," he said. He also thanked the judge, court staff, the Australian embassy in Mexico and the Australian Federal Police for their support throughout the process.
"No outcome can ever undo this tragedy, but we hope today marks an important step towards justice and allows us to continue honouring their lives and the extraordinary young men they were. They will never be forgotten," Martin Robinson said.
Natalie Weirtz, Rhoad's fiancee, addressed the court from the United States. "The accused are guilty and must be punished so that no other family suffers the same pain," she said. "Since Carter's death, I feel paranoid and isolated."
Martin Robinson announced that a foundation established in his sons' names would carry on their legacy. The Callum and Jake Robinson Foundation aims to "help people live bigger, shine brighter and love harder in their honour."
In November, the then-girlfriend of the main defendant was sentenced to 20 years in prison after admitting she had instigated the robbery. She was identified as Ary Gisell Silva.
The killings sent shockwaves through Australia and the United States. Ensenada is known as a welcoming destination for surfers, and the area where the men were killed is generally considered safer than other parts of Mexico. The murders prompted local surfers to call for greater security for residents and tourists, citing other recent incidents of violence in the state.
Baja California is nonetheless one of Mexico's most violent states, affected by organised crime and drug trafficking, though cartel activity does not typically target foreign visitors.
