American, Australians missing in Mexico ID’d after bodies found in well
Rescue workers, forensics, and prosecutors work in a waterhole where human remains were found near La Bocana Beach, Santo Tomas delegation, in Ensenada, Baja California State, Mexico, on May 3, 2024. (Photo by Guillermo Arias/AFP via Getty Images)
The bodies of three tourists who disappeared while on a camping and surfing trip in Baja California have been identified.
The bodies were found last week in a remote well about 50 feet deep near the township of Santo Tomás, which was near the remote seaside area where the missing men’s tents and truck were found.
Chief state prosecutor María Elena Andrade Ramírez said thieves apparently killed the three to steal their truck because they wanted the tires, and then dumped their bodies in the well.
A fourth cadaver that had been there much longer was also found.
The thieves allegedly covered the well with boards. "It was literally almost impossible to find it," Andrade Ramírez said, and it took two hours to winch the bodies out of the well.
RELATED: 3 bodies found in search for US and Australian surfers who mysteriously vanished in Mexico
Brothers Jake and Callum Robinson from Australia and American Jack Carter Rhoad had been staying along a stretch of coast south of the city of Ensenada, posting idyllic photos on social media of waves and isolated beaches, before they went missing last weekend.
Three suspects are being held in connection with the case, which locals said was solved far more quickly than the disappearances of thousands of Mexicans.
This story was reported from Detroit. The Associated Press contributed.