How notorious cartel is linked to murder of Perth brothers
Jesús Gerardo and Irineo Francisco have been transferred to Mexico's maximum-security 'El Hongo' prison due to their alleged ties to the notoriously violent Sinaloa cartel, according to the ABC.
Two other co-accused, Ángel Jesús and Ari Gisell, reportedly do not appear to have any links to the cartel.
Mr Gerardo and Mr Francisco's alleged links to the cartel, which earlier this year was designated a terror group by the Trump administration, was revealed in court documents.
All four accused faced court in Esenda, Mexico, overnight on Friday, Perth time, with the parents of the Robinson brothers dialling into the proceedings by video video-link. Brothers Jesús Gerardo Garcia Cota and Cristian Alejandro García. Credit: Unknown / Supplied
The new cartel claims came to light after prosecutor Miguel Ángel Gaxiola Rodríguez said that despite the horrific killings occurring in an area notorious for cartel activity and violence, the most likely reason for the murders was tyre theft.
The brothers had been camping in a remote part of northern Mexico with their American friend Carter Rhoad when they were each shot in the head in April last year.
Their bodies were then callously dumped in a 15-metre-deep well in Baja California. A fourth, unrelated body was also found in the same location.
All four defendants are charged with the aggravated homicide of the surfers from Perth and their American friend, Carter Rhoad. Callum Robinson. Credit: Georgina Noack / Instagram / emily_livia
The ABC reported court documents showed Mr Gerardo and Mr Francisco were transferred from a local prison in the city of Ensenada in August, after the court found they 'require special security measures given that penitentiary authorities have identified them as members of criminal groups affiliated with the Sinaloa Cartel'.
The document also said one defendant 'claimed within the detention centre population that he can escape confinement at any time he chooses, in addition to participating in the use of prohibited substances on behalf of the gang known as 'Los Paisas'.
Lawyers for the accused men appealed the transfer decision, but two courts upheld the decision saying they were satisfied the men had ties to criminal groups operating in service of the cartel.
The court of appeals document said both men had 'high criminal capacity, high aggressiveness, emotional detachment, high egocentricity, and marked emotional instability'.
Since their arrests, a court was told Gerardo — who was the first to be taken into custody — had allegedly confessed to his then-partner, showing her the allegedly stolen tyres and then allegedly telling her: 'I f...ed up three gringos'.
The case will return to court on July 25.
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