World
Mexico Trial Opens for Suspects in 2024 Killing of Two Australian Surfers and American Companion
Three men accused of murdering two Australian brothers and their American friend during a suspected robbery in Mexico appeared in court this week as their trial began in the coastal city of Ensenada. Jake Robinson, 30, and Callum Robinson, 33, along with their American friend Jack Carter Rhoad, 30, were fatally shot in April 2024 while on a surfing trip along Mexico's Pacific coast in the state of Baja California. The three men had been camping in a remote beachside area when they were attacked. Their bodies were discovered days later, dumped in a shaft atop a cliff, each bearing gunshot wounds to the head.
Prosecutors allege the killings occurred during an attempted theft of the victims' pickup truck, which was later found burned near where the bodies were recovered.
The Robinson brothers' parents traveled from Australia to attend the opening of proceedings on Monday. Their mother, Debra Robinson, wept in the courtroom after looking toward the defendants. Speaking to reporters beforehand, her partner Martin Robinson said the family's presence was meant to honor their sons. "It's about representing our sons, being here for them. I know they want us to be here," he said. "We want to find out what happened. We want to find out why."
Three witnesses testified on the trial's opening day, including the stepson of one of the defendants. Testifying from a separate room with his identity concealed, he described his stepfather as a violent man and said he had accompanied the accused to the location where the killings took place. He recalled waiting nearby when a disturbance broke out. "I heard a lot of noise," he told the court, adding that he fled the scene but returned after the group called him back. He said he was later warned that he would suffer the same fate as "the gringos" if he spoke about what happened.
The killings drew widespread grief and outrage in both Australia and the United States, where friends and relatives of the victims organized an extensive search effort on social media to help locate their bodies. Callum Robinson had played professional lacrosse in the US, while his brother Jake was training to become a doctor. Rhoad had been due to marry just months after his death.
Baja California ranks among Mexico's most violent states, with organized crime and drug trafficking common, though such violence rarely affects tourists. Still, foreign travelers have occasionally been targeted along Mexico's Pacific coast. In a similar case in 2015, Australian surfers Dean Lucas and Adam Coleman were killed while traveling through the northwestern state of Sinaloa, with their bodies later burned.