Mexican authorities have confirmed that the two Australians and an American who went missing in northern Mexico last week are dead after their bodies were identified by their parents.
The bodies of Australian brothers Callum, 33, and Jake Robinson, 30, as well as American Carter Rhoad, 30, were found at the bottom of a well in Baja California state earlier this week after a days-long search.
The three foreigners went missing while on a surfing vacation near the popular tourist town of Ensenada, about 90 minutes south of the U.S.-Mexico border on the Pacific coast.
The Baja California state attorney general's office said in a statement that the confirmation was issued as soon as the victims' parents “were able to identify them, without the need for genetic testing.”
State Attorney General Elena Andrade told the parents and diplomatic officials that there was “a total institutional commitment to continue investigating these unfortunate events until those responsible receive the full weight of the law,” the statement said.
On Saturday, Andrade said the bodies were found in an advanced state of decomposition at the bottom of a well more than 50 feet deep.
A source from the attorney general's office told Reuters that all three bodies had been shot to the head.
Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers offered his condolences to the families of Callum and Jake and said the entire country was mourning with them.
“We can only imagine what this ordeal has been like for them and for Callum and Jake's loved ones,” he told a news conference.
“It has been an absolutely terrible, absolutely horrific ordeal and our thoughts are with them all today.”
Three people have been arrested so far, officials say.
A burnt-out vehicle believed to have been used by the three surfers was also found in the area.
The preliminary hypothesis of the Mexican authorities is that the arrested persons tried to carjack the foreigners and when the surfers resisted, they were shot and their bodies dumped in a well.
The three surfers were last seen on April 27 and were reported missing a few days later, when authorities launched a multi-day search with help from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Baja California is one of the most violent states in Mexico, although the Ensenada area is considered safer. The U.S. Department of State is advising Americans to reconsider travel to the state due to crime and kidnapping.