Three men accused of killing two Australian brothers and their American friend during a 2024 Baja California surf trip went on trial Monday, Sept. 7, in Ensenada.

Jesús Gerardo García, known as "El Kekas," and two co-defendants identified as Irineo Francisco N. and Ángel Jesús N. face charges of murder, violent robbery and auto theft in the deaths of Callum Ryan Robinson, 33, Jake Martin Robinson, 30, and Jack Carter Rhoad, 30, the Associated Press reported. The latter two defendants' surnames were withheld under Mexican criminal procedure.

The case hit close to home in San Diego. Callum Robinson lived in Ocean Beach and played professional lacrosse as a member of Australia's national team, according to NBC San Diego. His brother Jake was visiting from Australia and was set to begin work as a doctor upon returning home. Rhoad, a Point Loma resident and 2014 Point Loma Nazarene University graduate, was killed months before his planned wedding.

The three were reported missing April 27, 2024, while camping at Punta San José near Ensenada. Prosecutors allege the attackers surprised the surfers and shot them, CBS News reported. Their bodies were found May 3, 2024, in a remote well about 50 feet deep, roughly four miles from the campsite, with gunshot wounds to their heads. The victims' pickup truck was found burned nearby.

Prosecutors say the killings grew out of a robbery targeting the truck. García's former partner, Ary Gisell Silva Raya, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2025 after admitting she instigated the theft. She had told the court the surfers had "good phones and good tires," according to CBS News.

Martin Robinson, father of Callum and Jake, traveled to Ensenada with his wife, Debra, for the trial's opening day. "I know they would want us to be here; they would do the same for us," he told reporters before entering the courthouse.

Debra Robinson burst into tears in the courtroom.

Three witnesses testified on the opening day, including the stepson of one defendant, who spoke from an adjoining room with his face concealed. He described his stepfather as violent and said the accused warned him that "the same thing that happened to the gringos would happen to him if he said anything," according to CBS News. The proceedings were moved to a smaller courtroom amid accusations that people associated with the defendants had intimidated witnesses, the BBC reported.

Mexican prosecutors are seeking sentences of more than 200 years for each defendant, with an additional 168-year sentence sought for the alleged ringleader, according to the BBC. Defense attorneys argued there was not enough evidence to support the robbery theory.

The judge-only trial is expected to last four weeks, with dozens of witnesses set to testify.