Three men in Mexico received 158-year prison sentences Friday for killing Australian surfers Callum and Jake Robinson and their American friend, Carter Redd Rhoad.
A federal judge in the town of Ensenada, Baja California, sentenced Jesús Gerardo García, Irineo Francisco and Ángel Jesús to 158 years and nine months each. The charges were murder, robbery with violence and vehicle theft with violence.
García’s accomplice, Ary Gisell Silva Raya, was convicted of aggravated robbery with violence and vehicle theft with violence. She agreed to an abbreviated trial and received a 20-year sentence in November.
García, Francisco and Jesús were convicted last week of killing the Robinson brothers and Rhoad. Authorities said the killers wanted to steal the tires from the victims’ truck.
“The attackers pull out a gun they were carrying and kill the person who initially resisted the robbery, then on the other two,” Baja California prosecutor María Elena Andrade said, according to a report from The Associated Press.
Mexican authorities found the trio’s bodies in a well in Baja California in May 2024.
The three men had traveled to Punta San José, about 50 miles from Ensenada, where their bodies were later found, for a surfing trip in April 2024.
The Robinsons’ parents attended the sentencing. They told reporters the verdict marked a significant end to two tragic years since their sons’ deaths.
“Today’s guilty verdict is a significant moment in our long and painful journey to seek justice for our beautiful sons, Callum and Jake, and their friend Carter Rhoad, whose lives were so cruelly taken from them in 2024,” Matin Robinson said.
The deaths drew international attention and shook the local economy, which authorities said relies heavily on tourism.
Antonio Otañez, president of the Baja California surfers association, said he was happy to see justice served. He admitted, however, that the incident caused a “major drop” in tourism.
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