Callum Robison, a 33-year-old Australian, lived in San Diego, California, where he welcomed his brother Jake Robinson, 30, and his American friend Jack Carter Rhoad, also 30. The three planned to take a surfing trip to Mexico, where they arrived on April 26th.
When they arrived in Mexico, Callum published a photo on the social network Instagram with the description “It starts like this…”, the young man shared several images of the trip, the last one was published on the 27th.
The two brothers, Callum and Jake, and their American friend, Jack, were camping in Santo Tomás, Ensenada, where they were last seen on April 27, one day after arriving in Mexico.
The surfers did not arrive at the accommodation they had booked and there were no further signs of life from the three, which led a friend to file a missing person report on April 30, in Baja California.
The mother of the Australians, Debra Robinson, made a post on the social network Facebook where she appealed to people to help her find her children, which made the case gain notoriety.
On May 2, the surfers’ camp was found, however the only thing belonging to the young people that the authorities found were the burned tents.
At the scene, according to Elena Andrade, attorney general of Baja California, they also found bullets, bloodstains and marks of violence, which could suggest that this had been a scene of violence.
The bodies were found on May 3, eight days after their disappearance, in a well 15 meters deep.
Investigation
Authorities suspect that the murder of the young people was a robbery attempt that went wrong. “When they saw the white pickup truck, the victims’ vehicle, they went to the location to try to steal the car. The surfers were surprised and offered resistance”, explained the prosecutor to the newspaper El País.
According to that outlet, authorities believe that one of the young men was shot for trying to stop the robbery and his friends tried to defend him. The assailants “when they saw that the situation was out of control, they disposed of the bodies.”
Suspects
Three Mexican citizens were arrested. Jesús Gerardo, known as ‘El Kekas’, and with a criminal record, ranging from domestic violence to car theft and drug trafficking. The other two suspects are Gerardo’s brother and his girlfriend, who was found with one of the victims’ cell phones.
The girlfriend of the main suspect, ‘El Kekas’, told the court that the man confessed to killing the three surfers and stealing their car tires.
According to the newspaper The Sydney Morning Heraldthe woman also said that ‘El Kekas’ equipped the car with stolen tires the morning after the alleged murders, that he fled the house and went to his mother’s house.
The man awaits trial.
The woman, at the time of her arrest, in addition to one of the victims’ cell phones, also had amphetamines with her. She was accused of drug possession.
Reactions
Emily Horwath, Callum Robinson’s girlfriend, shared videos of the couple dancing and playing on social media and also the last audio her boyfriend left her: “Happy Tuesday! Good morning. It’s 11:11 am and I’m thinking of you.”
“I will play this over and over again,” says the girl. The young woman also said that her heart was “shattered into a million pieces”.
The brothers’ mother, Debra Robinson, says the “world has become a darker place” after the deaths of her two children.
According to the Sky News, the woman said her children’s bodies or ashes will eventually be taken back to Australia. “Now it’s time to bring them home to family and friends,” she said.
