A Mexican woman was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her role in the murder of three tourists during a carjacking in the northwestern state of Baja California last year.
Ary Gisell Silva, 23, pleaded guilty in state court to instigating the violent assault on Australian brothers Callum Ryan Robinson and Jake Martin Robinson, and their American friend Jack Carter Rhoad, in April 2024.
of three suspects awaiting trial for the murder of two Australians and one American who had come to Baja California to surf.
The judge handed down the sentence following an abbreviated trial after Silva had renounced her right to an oral trial. By waiving her right to a full trial, Silva received a reduced sentence.
The judge’s ruling also requires her to pay damages exceeding 54,285 Mexican pesos (US $2,935), with the possibility of further civil compensation for the victims.
Silva offered a tearful apology in court, acknowledging that “nothing I can say will compensate you or give you peace.”
The three men arrested on charges of killing the tourists will be tried at a later date.
Silva did not dispute the prosecutors’ case that she was the first to contact the surfers after noticing they were carrying valuables.
According to the newspaper El País, the Baja California Prosecutor’s Office (FGE-BC) based its case on the testimony of a witness who heard García say, “He has a good cell phone and good tires for my pickup.”
Silva allegedly made the statement while standing alongside the victims’ vehicle, which was parked in the Punta San José tourist area, about a two-hour drive south of Ensenada, Baja California, the witness declared.
The FGE-BC argued that Silva then “instigated her companions” to rob the victims.
Silva testified that the three alleged murderers — identified in court as Jesús Gerardo “N,” Irineo Francisco “N” and Ángel Jesús “N” — tailed the vehicle to the campsite on the beach where the foreigners were staying.
The BBC reported that Jesús Gerardo “N” and Irineo Francisco “N” have ties with the Sinaloa drug cartel, although prosecutors do not suspect any links between the murders and organized crime.
According to the official reconstruction, the surfers were surprised at their campsite by the suspects, who attempted to steal their Chevrolet Colorado and other belongings. When they resisted, the attackers shot each of them in the head.
The suspects then dumped the bodies of the victims in a remote well about 8 kilometers distant.
Forensic experts found traces of blood and drag marks at the campsite and identified an attempt to destroy evidence by burning tents and the vehicle. It took authorities eight days to find the bodies of the three surfers.
Jake Robinson, 33 and a doctor, traveled to the United States in mid-April to visit his brother Callum, 30, who lived in San Diego and played professional lacrosse in the U.S. Rhoad, 30 and originally from San Diego, worked at a technology firm and had plans to get married in August 2024.
The three attended the Coachella music festival in California before traveling to Mexico, arriving at Punta San José on April 27 only to be murdered a few hours later.
With reports from The Associated Press, El País and BBC
