What happened to Callum, Jake and Carter? Mexican authorities located three bodies in the state of Baja California, where an American and two Australians were missing. Brothers Callum and Jake Robinson, 33 and 30, and Carter Rhoad, 30, had not given any sign to their loved ones for a week. They had surfed and camped along the Baja coast but failed to show up at their accommodation in Rosarito.
On Wednesday, the mother of the missing Australians, Debra Robinson, posted on a local community Facebook page a plea for help to find her sons, expressing concern that she had not heard from them since April 27. Robinson said his sons have not been heard from since Saturday, April 27. Debra Robinson was even more worried because Callum, the eldest, is diabetic. It was she who gave the name to Carter Road but the US State Department did not confirm this identity, simply citing the disappearance of an “American citizen”. The Robinson family is originally from Perth.
The FBI confirmed to American media that three bodies had been found in La Bocana, not far from Ensenada, but postponed until the conclusion of forensic examinations of the remains, which will be carried out by a state laboratory, before confirming the identity of the deceased.
In the meantime, Mexican investigators continue to search the rugged area where the bodies were found for additional evidence. They work with the FBI and the Australian and American consulates. A burned white van was also found in the area.
Three people questioned by police
On Friday, Mexican justice issued warrants for the crime of forced disappearance, and three people were reportedly questioned in this context. María Elena Andrade Ramírez, state attorney general, said some were directly linked to the case but did not specify whether they were suspects or witnesses. Even though drug cartels are active in the area, she said “all avenues of investigation are open at this time.” “Unfortunately, it was only in recent days that they were reported missing. So this means that significant hours or time has been lost,” she said before the bodies were found.
Including the ultraviolet city of Tijuana – 2 million inhabitants, 2,000 homicides, for those registered, per year -, Baja California is one of the most violent states in Mexico, even if the region of Ensenada is considered safer. The U.S. State Department is advising Americans to reconsider travel to the state due to crimes and kidnappings. In December, Tijuana cartel leaders murdered at least five police officers in their hunt for corrupt agents who stole a drug shipment from them. In 2015, two Australian surfers, Adam Coleman and Dean Lucas, were in the western state of Sinaloa. The authorities had claimed that they had been victims of highway bandits, not traffickers.
Less than a month ago, in the state of Coahuila, bordering the United States, the trafficking cartel that kidnapped four Americans and murdered two of them issued a letter of apology and handed over the alleged perpetrators. to the authorities.
