Three men have been sentenced to life in prison in Mexico after being convicted of murdering Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson and their American friend Jack Carter Rhoad during a surfing trip.
The three tourists were attacked while camping near a remote beach on the Pacific coast in Baja California in April 2024. Their bodies were discovered several days later in a shaft near a cliff, each with gunshot wounds to the head.
Jesus ‘El Kekas’ Gerardo, described in court as the ringleader, was convicted alongside Irineo Francisco and Angel Jesus. A Mexican court sentenced all three to 158 years and nine months in prison, seven days after they were found guilty.
The Robinson brothers’ parents, Debra and Martin Robinson, attended the trial and sat hand in hand as the verdicts were delivered on October 9. Mrs Robinson had urged the court to impose the maximum sentences in a victim impact statement.
“No sentence can bring Callum and Jake back; nothing can undo what has happened, but accountability matters,” she said.
The couple had been present throughout the proceedings and sat just metres from the defendants during six hours of closing arguments on October 8. Mrs Robinson cried and embraced an Australian consular representative after the guilty verdicts were announced.
Prosecutors said the three men were killed during a robbery that went wrong. The defence argued that there was not enough evidence to establish the case, but the judge ruled that several witnesses had given credible and consistent testimony.
One of those witnesses was Ari Gisell, the former girlfriend of Jesús Gerardo, who had previously been jailed for her role in instigating the robbery that led to the killings.
She told the court that Gerardo had described the victims pleading for their lives before they were murdered, and had later joked about the men crying.
Jake Robinson, 30, was a doctor who was due to begin a position at a hospital in Geelong, south-west of Melbourne, after returning to Australia.
His older brother Callum, 33, was a professional lacrosse player based in San Diego, while their American friend, Jack Carter Rhoad, was 30.
