ENSENADA, Mexico (AP) — A local judge on Friday found three Mexicans guilty of the murders of two Australian brothers and their American friend in April 2024 in the Mexican state of Baja California.
The trial for the triple homicide that shocked Mexico and drew international attention concluded Friday after Judge Raúl Hernández in the coastal city of Ensenada ruled that Jesús Gerardo García, alias “El Kekas,” Irineo Francisco “N,” and Ángel Jesús “N” were responsible for the murders of Australians Callum and Jake Robinson and American Carter Redd Rhoad.
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The defendants, who had been in custody for more than two years, were also found guilty of armed robbery and armed carjacking.
“Today’s guilty verdict is a significant moment in our long and painful journey to seek justice for our beautiful sons, Callum and Jake, and their friend Carter Rhoad, whose lives were so cruelly taken from them in 2024," said father Martin Robinson.
The three traveled to Baja California in April 2024 to surf, but shortly after arriving in the town of Punta San Jose, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) from Ensenada, they were reported missing. Their bodies were found on May 3 in a well.
García, identified as the perpetrator of the murders, was arrested in May 2024 in connection to the case, along with his ex-partner Ary Gisell Silva Raya, Irineo Francisco “N,” and Ángel Jesús “N.”
During the month-long trial, chilling details of the brutal crime were revealed. Silva Raya testified last month during a hearing that García confessed to her that he arrived at the tent where the foreigners were staying with a 9mm pistol.
Upon seeing him, they began throwing their belongings to prevent him from attacking them, and one of them begged for his life, which the assailant ignored, she said.
The state prosecutor’s office reported that Silva Raya arrived in Punta San Jose on April 27, 2024, where she met the three foreigners and “instigated one of her companions to rob them,” which was carried out the following day.
The woman, who was found in possession of one of the victims’ cell phones, was sentenced in November 2025 to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to “aggravated robbery with violence” and “vehicle theft with violence” in an expedited proceeding. However, García and his two accomplices decided to go to trial.
The judge will announce the final sentence on Oct. 16. The Baja California State Attorney General’s Office requested for each defendant the “exemplary sentence" of 210 years in prison.
“No outcome can ever undo this tragedy, but we hope today marks an important step towards justice and allows us to continue honoring their lives and the extraordinary young men they were," said Martin Robinson. “They will never be forgotten.”
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This story corrects the name of Carter Redd Rhoad. A previous version incorrectly stated his name as Jack Carter Rhoad.
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Follow AP’s Latin America coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
