Three men jailed for over 158 years for surfers’ murders
A Mexican judge set the sentences on Friday for the murder of two Australians and an American.
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A judge in Mexico has sentenced three men to 158 years and nine months in prison each for killing and robbing three foreign surfers in 2024. The sentences were handed down on Friday, a week after the men were found guilty.
The ruling was delivered in Ensenada, in the Mexican state of Baja California. Reuters reports the sentences on the basis of a judicial source; the AP news agency also reports on the sentencing. The sentence applies to each of the three men individually. The offences proven include murder and violent robbery, including the theft of a vehicle. The victims were two Australian brothers and their American friend.
The new decision concerns the length of the sentences. According to the news agencies, the judge had already determined guilt a week earlier. Friday’s events therefore mark a further step in the criminal case, more than two years after the trip during which the three surfers were killed. The distinction is relevant: the sentencing is recent news, while the crimes themselves date from 2024.
The three friends had travelled to the coast of Baja California in late April that year to surf. According to AP, they visited the area around Punta San José, near Ensenada. Their bodies were found in May. The case attracted international attention because the victims included both Australian and American travellers. Details of the violence are not necessary to understand the ruling and the background.
The sentencing followed a trial that, according to AFP, lasted about a month. The Australian brothers’ parents had travelled from Australia to Mexico for it. They returned after the guilty verdict. According to The Independent’s report published on AOL, they followed the sentencing hearing remotely. The coverage thus also describes the practical distance between the trial in Mexico and bereaved relatives in other countries.
Prosecutors had ultimately sought 210 years in prison for each of the men, AFP reported ahead of the sentencing hearing. The sentences imposed are lower. The reports consulted do not provide sufficient detail on precisely how the judge calculated the sentence for each offence. Without the full judgment, no further explanation can therefore be given for the difference between the sentences sought and those imposed.
According to The Independent, the defence has announced its intention to appeal. That report also states that the judge ordered the convicted men to pay compensation to the families. The information consulted does not include a verified amount. The announced appeal also means that the ruling cannot be described without qualification as the definitive end of the legal proceedings.
The exceptionally long sentence is the term imposed by the judge. How long the men will actually remain in custody under the applicable rules has not been established using the sources consulted. This article draws no conclusion on that point. What is established, according to the consistent news agency reports, is that on 16 October the judge sentenced each of the three convicted men to 158 years and nine months in prison.
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The core details of the ruling are confirmed by Reuters and AP and fall within the news period. Legal details that could not be checked against the judgment have been qualified or explicitly attributed to an additional source.
- confirmed On 16 October 2026, three men were each sentenced to 158 years and nine months in prison. — Reuters gives the date and individual sentences on the basis of a judicial source; AP confirms these. source
- confirmed The guilty verdict was delivered a week earlier and concerned murder and violent property offences. — Reuters distinguishes the earlier guilty verdict from the sentencing. source
- confirmed The victims were two Australian brothers and an American friend; they travelled to Baja California in April 2024. — The nationalities and travel period are given in the news agency reports. source
- confirmed The ruling was delivered in Ensenada; the victims visited Punta San José and were found in May 2024. — AP specifies the locations and the month in which the bodies were found. source
- confirmed The trial lasted about a month, the Australian parents travelled to Mexico for it, and the final sentence sought was 210 years per man. — AFP provides this background to the trial ahead of the sentencing. source
- confirmed The Independent reports an intended appeal, a compensation order and the Australian parents following the sentencing hearing remotely. — This information appears in the report of 17 October; the filing of an appeal is not presented as an established fact. source
Editor's note
Reuters and AP independently confirm the sentences and date. The full judgment has not been consulted; the actual time to be served has not been established. The intended appeal and compensation order are attributed to The Independent. Private individuals remain unnamed.Sources
- Mexican judge gives three men 158 years in Australian, US surfers' murders — Reuters / AOL
- 3 men sentenced to more than 158 years for the killings of Australian, US surfers in Mexico — Associated Press
- Mexican killers of Australian, US surfers await sentencing — AFP / RTL Today
- Three men jailed for 158 years each over murders of Australian and US surfers in Baja California — The Independent / AOL
More on this in Dutch media
- Het Parool — „mexico baja california”
- Trouw — „mexico baja california”
- NRC — „mexico baja california”