Prosecutors lack murder weapon for Baja beach killings of three foreign surfers

Investigators found a handgun that belonged to one of the defendants accused in the killings at a remote but historically popular surf spot, but it was not the cause of death.ENSENADA, Mexico (CN) — On Thursday, prosecution directly connected Jesús Gerardo through his firearm to the killings of three foreign surfers on an idyllic Baja beach who were camping and surfing near a lighthouse.The bodies of Australian brothers, Jake and Callum Robinson and their American friend, Carter Rhoad were found with gunshots at the bottom of a dry makeshift well on the beach on May 3, 2024.Irineo Francisco and Ángel Jesús are co-defendants in the trial on the final day of its third week. Trial is expected to wrap up next week, with sentencing to follow.The three defendants are charged with aggravated homicide, aggravated robbery, violent robbery and grand theft auto in the Baja killings.Prosecutors linked a single 9 mm bullet a ballistic forensics expert extracted from Jake Robinson’s thigh to the unregistered “80 percent” handgun presented to court the day before. A ballistics expert testified the bullet extracted from the body can only correspond to one firearm due to the microscopic intricacies formed on the bullet caused by violent action of the firearm’s mechanism.This was the only bullet found in any of the victims’ bodies. But despite direct evidence of the handgun found in Gerardo’s truck being used to shoot Jake Robinson, it doesn’t give prosecutors evidence for cause of death.All three victims’ were shot behind the ear with a .45-caliber weapon, with exit wounds in every victim. The weapon’s casings were found at the crime scene and also have been investigated by ballistics experts.The ballistics expert emphatically stated on Wednesday that the shots to the head with the .45-caliber weapon were the victims’ causes of death — not the 9mm bullet, which leaves the prosecution without a murder weapon connected to any of the defendants.An investigator for the Prosecutor’s Office of Baja California testified last Thursday to finding the 9mm gun inside a white Ford Ranger pick-up truck used by Gerardo. Gerardo’s ex-girlfriend, Ari Gisell, previously testified that Gerardo kept a 9mm handgun with him at all times and a list of people he intended to kill.Though the handgun itself is not traceable because it was legally sold without a serial number because it is an incomplete weapon, bullets containing specific characteristics that can only correspond to that gun are, and have been involved. in past cases that are already in the state’s database.Some of these marks, the expert explained, are a specific style of cratering and the same number of small horizontal lines that match up directly with past bullets thought to be shot from the same gun. The judge has asked names of investigators testifying the case not be disclosed.Also on Thursday, an Ensenada police officer testified to court to securing a partially burned and abandoned white pick-up found near Santo Tomás winery ranch on May 2 after receiving a call from a ranch worker who testified last Thursday to finding a burned pickup truck while watering crops.The routine procedural movements of court were interrupted when the judge asked the officer, as he does for every witness, if he has any relation to the defendants.“Yes, I do your honor,” the police officer said. “Ángel Jesús is my cousin.”He described the ranch he found the truck with two of his colleagues, whom he named in court. He said one colleague told him this truck has to do with the disappearance of three foreigners in the area.It was the first time during the trial that any of the defendants showed emotion: Jesús Gerardo stared angrily with a sly smirk and said something to Ángel Jesús sitting next to him in a matching orange jumpsuit, shackled to the bench they were sitting.The defense questioned the witness about the state of the truck’s tires, which the officer said were completely burned.Prosecution has identified the theft of the surfers’ tires as the motive so far for the crimes. This theory began when Giselle testified to court in November 2025 she instigated the crimes during an alcohol binge when she told her then-boyfriend, Gerardo, about the foreigners on the beach with good tires and cell phones.Giselle received 20 years in prison and forfeited her right to a trial by pleading guilty to violent robbery.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads