World

Bodies found in Mexico where Australian, US tourists missing, sources say

08:33 am on 4 May 2024

File photo: A surfer enters the sea in Rosarito, Baja California State, Mexico. Photo: Guillermo Arias / AFP

Mexican authorities have located three bodies in the state of Baja California where two Australians and one American were reported missing, according to two sources with knowledge of the investigation.

Australian brothers Callum, 33, and Jake Robinson, 30, and American Jack Carter Rhoad, 30, were last seen on 27 April, according to Baja California's prosecutor's office.

The three were on vacation surfing in the municipality of Ensenada, about an hour and a half south of the US-Mexico border.

The state prosecutor's office did not immediately respond to a request on Friday for updated information on the case.

State prosecutor Socorro Ibarra said on Thursday that three people were being investigated in connection with the case, though it was unclear whether they were involved in the disappearance of the men.

Tents were found in the area where the missing men were last seen, said Ibarra, adding that they were formally reported missing days after their actual disappearance.

A burnt white pickup truck was also found in the area, authorities said.

Baja California is one of Mexico's most violent states, although tourist areas like Ensenada are considered safer. The US State Department advises Americans to reconsider travel to the state due to crime and kidnapping.

The US embassy in Mexico and Australia's foreign ministry in Canberra did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

- Reuters