# Witnesses forced into protection program after alleged threats in trial over Australian surfers killed in Mexico

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/witnesses-forced-into-protection-program-after-alleged-threats-in-trial-over-australian-surfers-killed-in-mexico/
- Published: 2026-09-08T07:37:05+00:00
- Updated: 2026-09-08T13:43:03+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16113181/australia-surfers-jake-callum-robinson-murder-trial-mexico.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: Americas, World

## Key points

- Trial opened for three men accused of killing two Australian surfers, US friend
- Witnesses placed in protection after alleged intimidation by defendants' associates
- Prosecutors say 2024 killings occurred during a robbery gone wrong

## Summary

The trial of three men accused of murdering Australian surfers Jake and Callum Robinson and their American friend Jack Carter Rhoad in Baja California, Mexico, opened in Ensenada with witnesses testifying under a court-ordered protection scheme after alleged intimidation by people linked to the defendants. On the opening day, the judge ordered the accused out of the courtroom after prosecutors said a woman who previously dated defendant Jesús Gerardo, known as "El Kekas", and her son had been threatened; their identities have been withheld. The son testified he saw two of the accused near the beach campsite on the night of the killings, heard a gunshot and a struggle, and said "El Kekas" later warned him to stay silent, while his mother told the court in tears that she had urged him not to go out that night.

The Robinson brothers, aged 30 and 33, and Rhoad, 30, were shot dead while camping at a remote beach in April 2024 during what prosecutors say was a botched robbery of their pick-up truck, which was later found burned near their bodies; the defence disputes there is sufficient evidence for that theory. Their bodies were found dumped in a clifftop shaft days after they were reported missing, each with gunshot wounds to the head, in a case that prompted a major search and social media campaign and drew grief and outrage in Australia and the US. Brothers Jesus Gerardo Garcia Cota and Cristian Alejandro Garcia, along with a third man, are on trial, while the girlfriend of one of the accused, Ary Gisell Silva, was separately sentenced to 20 years in prison last year after admitting she instigated the robbery to steal the truck's tyres. The Robinsons' parents, Martin and Debra, travelled to Ensenada to attend proceedings.

## Coverage

- [Daily Mail: Witnesses forced into protection program after alleged threats in trial over Australian surfers killed in Mexico](https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16113181/australia-surfers-jake-callum-robinson-murder-trial-mexico.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490)
- [BBC World: Trial over alleged murders of Australian surfer brothers starts in Mexico](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crernpv433vo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss)

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.