Sinaloa cartel claim THEY handed over killers of American surfer and his two Australian friends after their bodies were dumped down a well - but local cops provide another story

Sinaloa cartel members have claimed they handed over the killers of an American surfer and his two Australian friends after their bodies were dumped down a well in Mexico.

US national Jack Carter Rhoad and brothers Callum and Jake Robinson were found murdered on Monday near the city of Ensenada.

The area is currently under the control of the vicious Sinaloa cartel, headed by brothers René and Aquiles Arzate.

But a representative from the organization denied any connection to the crime and stated they had turned over the culprits to the police after becoming afraid of 'unwanted attention'.

However, Mexican authorities have since claimed they arrested three suspects after tracking the location of one of the victims' phones.

Sinaloa cartel members have claimed they handed over the killers of  American surfer Jack Carter Rhoad and his two Australian friends after their bodies were dumped down a well in Mexico

Australian brothers Jake, 30, (right) and Callum Robinson, 33, (centre left; pictured with their parents) vanished without a trace in the Baja California region in Mexico

Brothers Jesús Gerardo Garcia Cota and Cristian Alejandro García have since been arrested. It is unclear which brother is which in their mugshots

Ari Gisel García Cota, 23, is one of three suspects arrested. She is reportedly the partner of Jesús Gerardo Garcia Cota, who was also arrested

 'They were low-level robbers acting alone. But we handed them over,' the Sinaloa member told the Daily Beast.

 'We learned that the cops were looking for the gringos and also began looking for those who were responsible. We called the authorities to let them know where to find them.'

Baja California investigators said the trio were killed after their pickup truck was set upon by thieves.

'The tourists refused and tried to fight back, but the robbers were armed.,' an investigator said.

'When the criminals took out their guns the three [tourists] tried to de-escalate things, but it was too late, they beat the three of them and then shot them in the head.'

The police said they contacted US authorities to obtain the victims' cell phone numbers and were able to use this to track down Rhoad's phone which was in the possession of a woman, Ari Gisel García Cota.

Cota and her partner Jesús Gerardo Garcia Cota, alias El Kekas, have since been charged.

Cristian Alejandro García, the brother of Kekas, was also charged.

The area where the murders took place is currently under the control of the vicious Sinaloa cartel, headed by brothers Aquiles and René Arzate (pictured L-R), which said it helped police identify the killers

The suspects were arrested during two police operations on Wednesday, May 1 - with Ms García Cota reportedly found in possession of one of the missing men's phones as well as illegal drugs

The style of the executions have sparked fears locally about the possible involvement of drug cartels which are rife in the region (pictured: the trio's vehicle was later found burnt-out in the Santo Tomás area)

Mexican authorities said bandits attacked the three to steal the tires off their truck before killing them all and dumping their bodies in a disused well

 All three of the suspects were in possession of an assortment of methamphetamines and other illegal drugs at the time of their arrest, according to Zeta.

The three tourists were just a few days into their vacation when they disappeared on April 27. 

The brothers' mother issued a desperate plea on social media after the group failed to turn up at an Airbnb they had booked in Rosarito. 

Their remains were found in a well more than 15 meters (49ft) deep next to a cliff at Punta San José in Santo Tomás, in the municipality of Ensenada, near a remote surfing spot known as Lighthouse, reports the San Diego Union-Tribune.

It took rescuers about 20 hours to pull the bodies out of the well.

Before the discovery of the bodies, local police had suspected foul play as Jack Rhoad's burned-out truck was found as well as an abandoned campsite with traces of blood and 'dental parts'.

The recruitment worker from San Diego was due to marry his fiancée Natalie Wiertz this summer - and had joined Australian brothers Callum and Jake Robinson for the road trip down the Pacific coast before his big day.