Three men have gone on trial in Mexico for the alleged murders of two Australian brothers and their American friend in 2024.<\/b><\/p>\n
The bodies of Callum Robinson, his younger brother Jake, and their friend Carter Rhoad from California – all in their early 30s – were found at the bottom of a well with gunshot wounds to their heads, days after they went missing during a surf trip in Baja California.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors are seeking jail sentences of more than 200 years for the defendants, who also face charges of violent robbery and auto theft.<\/p>\n
The parents of the brothers were in court on Tuesday in the coastal town of Ensenada, telling the media that it was “incredibly important and overwhelmingly difficult”.<\/p>\n
“We want the men accused of murdering our sons to see, in person, the human consequences of what happened,” Martin and Debra Robinson said in a statement, according to Australia’s national broadcaster, the ABC.<\/p>\n
“Callum and Jake were not simply victims in a case file – they were our sons, deeply loved by their family and friends, with lives, dreams and futures that were brutally taken away.”<\/p>\n
On the opening day, the accused – Jes\u00fas “El Kekas” Gerardo, Irineo Francisco and \u00c1ngel Jes\u00fas – were moved to a smaller courtroom amid accusations that some witnesses had been intimidated by people associated with the defendants.<\/p>\n
Dozens of witnesses are expected to give evidence during the four-week, judge-only trial.<\/p>\n
The 2024\u00a0alleged killings of the Robinson brothers<\/a>\u00a0and their US friend shocked Australians as well as many residents of the normally peaceful town of Ensenada.<\/p>\n Despite high levels of cartel violence in the northern Mexican border states, tourists are rarely targeted for such violent attacks in Baja California’s surf towns.<\/p>\n The ex-girlfriend of one of the accused, Ari Gisell, became the first person to be convicted over the tourists’ killings last year and was\u00a0sentenced to 20 years in prison<\/a>\u00a0for her role in their murders.<\/p>\n Mexican prosecutors are pursuing jail sentences of more than 200 years for each of the defendants, as well as an additional 168-year sentence for the alleged ringleader.<\/p>\n Prosecutors say the victims were killed due to a bungled robbery, while the defence argued there was not enough evidence to prove that theory.<\/p>\n Callum Robinson was a member of Australia’s national lacrosse team and lived in San Diego where he was a professional lacrosse player.<\/p>\n His younger brother Jake had travelled from Australia for the surf trip and was due to start a job as a doctor when he returned while their friend Rhoad was killed a few months before his wedding.<\/p>\n Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"