Advertisement

Three men arrested over shooting murder of missing Australian surfers in Mexico

Mexican authorities have arrested three men over the suspected murders of two Australian surfers whose burnt-out van was found with two unidentified bodies last weekend.

The suspects confessed to shooting a long-haired tourist in the face when he resisted a robbery before killing the second one in the gang-plagued northwestern state of Sinaloa on November 21, said chief state prosecutor Marco Antonio Higuera Gomez.


Adam Coleman (left) and Dean Lucas have been missing since November 20 while travelling to the city of Guadalajara to visit Coleman’s girlfriend. Photo: Supplied
Adam Coleman (left) and Dean Lucas have been missing since November 20 while travelling to the city of Guadalajara to visit Coleman’s girlfriend. Photo: Supplied

The robbers killed the second man, drove the vehicle to another location and "set fire to the van with two bodies inside," Higuera told reporters.

The prosecutor stressed that while the case was being investigated as a murder, the identity of the two bodies has yet to be confirmed through DNA tests.

Two other suspects are on the run. Prosecutors did not say when the arrests were made.

"These people are part of a criminal group dedicated to vehicle thefts, drug dealing and with a history of committing murders," Higuera said.

Missing surfer Adam Coleman and his girlfriend Andrea Gomez. Source: Facebook
Missing surfer Adam Coleman and his girlfriend Andrea Gomez. Source: Facebook

Gunshot wounds were found on two bodies discovered in a burned-out van in Mexico belonging to missing WA surfers Dean Lucas and Adam Coleman.

A Mexican official says the discovery suggests the victims were killed by gunfire before being set on fire.

The bodies have not been positively identified as those of the missing surfers, who disappeared two weeks ago in Mexico’s violence-plagued Sinaloa state but DNA tests are continuing.

The van’s identification numbers match a van owned by one of the men.

The Mexican official, who was not authorised to be quoted by name, confirmed the gunshot wounds and said it was a case of homicide.

Josie Cox and Andrea Gomez, the girlfriends of Mr Lucas and Mr Coleman, were travelling to Mexico with hair samples and dental records to assist with the DNA tests.

Mr Lucas and Mr Coleman had driven to Mexico from Edmonton, Alberta, and went missing November 20 while travelling to the city of Guadalajara to visit Coleman’s girlfriend.

Dean Lucas and Adam Coleman were last seen with this distinctive blue and white campervan with Canadian plates.
Dean Lucas and Adam Coleman were last seen with this distinctive blue and white campervan with Canadian plates.

The area of Sinaloa state where the van was found was known for robberies, murders and kidnappings carried out by criminal groups, said Navolato Mayor Miguel Calderon.

"It's like a Bermuda Triangle where criminal acts occur quite frequently, which we must deal with as a government," Calderon said, referring to a region where Navolato meets the municipalities of Mocorito and Angostura.

Morning news break - December 5