Americas
Mexican drug cartel Sinaloa claims it handed in robbers who killed Robinson brothers
The thieves accused of killing Perth brothers Callum and Jake Robinson and their US friend were reportedly handed over to police by a drug cartel.
The brothers and Jack Rhoad are believed to have been robbed then murdered while they were camping in the Ensenada region — which is under the control of feared crime cartel Sinaloa.
A member of the cartel has claimed that the men accused of carrying out the bungled robbery — Jesus Gerardo Garcia Cota and his brother Cristian Alejandro Garcia — were not part of the group.
“They were low-level robbers acting alone,” he told The Daily Beast.
“But we handed them over. We learned that the cops were looking for the gringos and also began looking for those who were responsible.
“We called the authorities to let them know where to find them.”
The cartel member said that the group aided police with the investigation to avoid “unwanted attention” from authorities.
Callum, 33, Jake, 30, and Mr Rhoad, 30, are believed to have been murdered by Jesus while camping in the Punta San Hose region in Santo Tomas.
Authorities have confirmed that the trio were killed after they tried to de-escalate the robbers, who had ambushed them to steal the pick-up truck they were driving.
A Baja California investigators told The Daily Beast that while the thieves were talking to the trio, they demanded the ute they were driving.
“The tourists refused and tried to fight back but the robbers were armed,” the investigator said.
“When the criminals took out their guns the three tourists tried to de-escalate things but it was too late.
“They beat the three of them and then shot them in the head,” .”
It is reported that the bandits then tried to destroy the dead men’s belongings and any evidence.
Drag marks, bullets and teeth have been found at the surfers’ campsite and their ute was later found burnt-out nearby, reportedly with a firearm inside it.
Their bodies were recovered after they were found down a 15m-deep well in the La Bocana, Santo Tomas district.
Each of the men had a gunshot wound to the head.
A fourth body was also found in the well, which is believed to be the property owner who went missing several weeks earlier.
In an Ensenada court, prosecutors claimed that Jesus had driven his girlfriend’s car to the area where the Robinsons and Mr Rhoad were camping sometime between the afternoon of Saturday, April 27, and Sunday morning, ambushing the trio.
The girlfriend of one of the killers — Ari Gisel Garcia Cota — was first arrested by authorities after she was found in possession of one of their mobile phones.
Her partner Jesus and his brother Cristian were arrested soon after.
Jesus has been charged with forced kidnapping, which is expected to be upgraded to murder.
In a shock twist, it was revealed in a Mexican court overnight that the girlfriend was now the key witness in the case.
“She has flipped on the ringleader and the evidence she’s provided to the prosecution will lead this case going forward,” Nine News reported.
“What’s alleged is that Jesus Gerardo was driving her car that night when he went out to that remote campsite.”
Prosecutors told the court that Jesus returned to the home and told his girlfriend: “I f**ked up three gringos.”
She asked: “What do you mean by that?”.
Jesus declared: “I killed them.”
The court was told that Jesus then showed her the new tyres he had put on her car.
It is claimed Ari then left her home and fled to her mother’s house, where she was later arrested by authorities. She then revealed what she knew about the disappearance of the men.
Jesus will remain in custody until November when he is next due to appear in court.
The Attorney-General said investigators were confident more than three people were involved in the attack and had not ruled out the possibility of more people being charged.
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