Three men found guilty of murdering two Australian surfer brothers and US friend

Speaking to media outside court a week ago, Debra Robinson said the couple were "deeply grateful" to Australians for the outpouring of support they had received and that they "feel the love and their arms around us".During the month-long trial, the prosecution had sought 150 years in prison for each of the three defendants.In November last year, the girlfriend of the alleged ringleader, Jesús "El Kekas" Gerardo, was sentenced in a separate trial to twenty years in prison. She had admitted to involvement in the robbery.At the time, the murders shocked locals and tourists in Ensenada who were disturbed at the apparent ease and sheer pointlessness of the killings.The beach town has a reputation as a welcoming spot for surfers and the chilling murders revealed much about how commonplace such extreme violence remains in Mexico.The only explanation the authorities appeared able to give was that the surfers - all in their early 30s - had ultimately been murdered for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.Their killings took place barely 36 hours after they crossed into Mexico from the US. Their bodies, however, were not found for another week when their families were able to identify them.At the time, the surfer community in Ensenada turned out in force to commemorate the men by paddling out at one of the area's best known surfing spots and throwing flowers into the sea.