Court proceedings continue for accused in Robinson brothers' murder

Ensenada, Mexico: A stray black dog lolls in the sunshine outside the courthouse here, where a murder trial of great interest to Australia has played out over the past four weeks. One Australian reporter dubs him “Scabbers”.

Next door is the court prison, where three Mexican men accused of murdering Perth brothers Jake and Callum Robinson, and their American friend Carter Rhoad, are locked up while they face trial. On the hillside there is a military cemetery from which you can see into the prison yard.

On each day the court is in session, the accused are led down to the courtroom in their bright-orange prison jumpsuits and white shoes and seated on a trio of seats just behind their defence lawyers, their ankles cuffed to one another.

Just a metre or two to their left are Debra and Martin Robinson, parents of the slain Australian brothers, who have endured every minute of this trial, thousands of kilometres from home. They sit behind the prosecution bench with a translator, in spitting distance of the men charged with murdering their sons.

Martin wears a polo shirt with the logo of the Callum and Jake Robinson Foundation, a charity they established after their sons’ deaths. On the back is the foundation’s motto: “Live Bigger, Shine Brighter, Love Harder.”

It is a small, beige and barren room. The judge sits behind a small wooden bench that looks like cheap timber, not hardwood or mahogany. A lone court officer operates an audiovisual link and the air-conditioner, which at one point needed to be shut off so that people could hear the judge.

The courtroom’s empty walls are white or grey and the floor is tiled. White fluorescent lights glow between the ceiling panels.

At the back of the room, there is space for about a dozen people in the public gallery. On Wednesday, all seats were filled with reporters, including several Australians and their local “fixers”. There is no jury, nor is there space for one; this case will be decided by a single judge alone.

Can a form of justice be found in a place like this? Debra and Martin Robinson hold out hope.

Reporters wishing to attend court must pre-register. In the foyer, a security officer marks your name off a typed list, before waving you inside.

You pass through a metal detector and into a sparse hallway, then up a flight of stairs. Visitors cannot bring phones or electronics into the courtroom, only pen and paper; there is a stand to deposit mobile phones just outside the courtroom door.

The hearing begins with the judge asking each person present in the room to state their name and affiliation – including members of the public gallery – as he checks the names off his own list. On Wednesday, he wore a teal shirt, green tie and black robes.

After the defence eschewed the opportunity to cross-examine two final witnesses, with the end of the trial in sight, Debra Robinson rose to read a short statement.

“We sincerely appreciate the workload you have managed,” she told the judge. “And we are grateful for your time and attention to this case.”

Debra explained the pair had flights booked to return to Australia on October 9, and would appreciate the verdict being delivered before then. It was originally thought the verdict could come as soon as this week.

“It would mean so much for us, as parents of Jake and Callum, to be here for the verdict,” Debra said, her voice cracking a little. “We have travelled such a long way to seek justice for our sons and Carter.”

The judge disappeared for a few minutes and returned to the bench. The closing arguments would be heard on October 8, he said, and the verdict delivered the following morning, giving them at least a chance of making a flight home that night. They would miss any sentencing, which will likely take place the following week.

Wednesday’s hearing went smoothly and rapidly and, having started just after 1pm, was finished before 2pm.

The accused men – alleged ringleader Jesus Gerardo, also known as El Kakas, Irineo Francisco and Angel Jesus – sat in silence throughout. One of them, Angel, briefly spoke to the judge to confirm they understood the next steps and did not wish to say anything.

When the hearing concluded, the judge came down to shake hands with the defence attorneys, and with the Robinsons. For them, it will be a long week ahead.

The centre of Ensenada is an oasis of calm in a dangerous part of the world. A port city of about 400,000 on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, it is a popular stop for cruise ships departing Los Angeles or San Diego. On Thursday, the Ruby Princess was docked there, alongside the Carnival Panorama.

But travel to the surrounding desert and forests, or even cities such as Tijuana, and things are different. Baja California has a reputation for violent crime and cartel warfare, even if the statistics show improvement.

The prosecution alleges that Jake and Callum Robinson and Carter Rhoad were victims of this violence. They disappeared in late April 2024 while camping near La Bocana de Santo Tomas, a remote surfing spot about two hours down a dirt road. The area has been called a “hotspot” for local drug labs and marijuana plantations.

The tourists were reported missing after they failed to check into an Airbnb. Days later, their bodies were found at the bottom of a well. They had been shot. Prosecutors allege the trio were targeted because the defendants were looking to steal their car’s tyres, and were killed when they resisted.

Ari Gisell, the then-girlfriend of Gerardo, is serving a 20-year sentence for instigating the robbery that allegedly led to the murders. She testified that Gerardo had described killing the three men, and had mocked them for crying.

The defence, meanwhile, argues there is not enough evidence to prove the defendants were responsible for the men’s deaths.

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