Mexican justice on Wednesday ordered proceedings against the main suspect in the murder in a seaside resort in Baja California (northwest) of three surfers who were reported missing on April 27, two Australians and an American, the prosecution said.
He indicated that he was pursuing the main suspect, Jesus Gerardo “N” alias “El Kekas”, for the murder of Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson, and their American friend Jack Carter, whose bodies were found near Ensenada , shot in the head. The bodies were formally identified on Sunday. On May 2, authorities in Baja California indicated that three Mexicans had been arrested and were being questioned in connection with these disappearances.
The three surfers disappeared on April 27 while camping in an area away from Santo Tomas, a seaside resort in the town of Ensenada. Prosecutors said they were gathering evidence to indict two other people, who are currently in prison for possession of methamphetamines.
He confirmed that the motive for the murder was the theft of the three surfers’ car. The bodies of the two brothers and their American friend were found at the foot of a cliff 15 meters deep. The Ensenada Forensic Service on Tuesday handed over the bodies to a funeral home that was supposed to transfer them to the United States, where the families are located.
“Our hearts are broken”
Also on Tuesday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese deplored the “tragic” death of the three surfers, saluting the memory of “wonderful young men”. “Our hearts are broken and the world has become a darker place,” said the mother of the two Australian brothers, Debra Robinson, from San Diego, an American city bordering Mexico. Violence occasionally strikes foreigners in Mexico. In March 2023, suspected members of the Gulf Cartel kidnapped four Americans in the city of Matamoros, on the US border. Two of them were killed.
According to official figures, more than 41 million tourists visited Mexico in 2023, more than half of which came from the United States, with the country’s beaches as their main destinations. In Ensenada, very popular with Americans because it is located around a hundred kilometers from the border, dozens of surfing enthusiasts demonstrated on Sunday to demand better security measures.
