Family Desperate for Answers After 2 San Diego Teens Found Shot Dead in Tijuana

Two teens from San Diego who went down to Mexico for a barbecue were found murdered execution-style on Sunday. 

Authorities are investigating what led to the murders of Christopher Gomez, 17, and Juan Suarez-Ojeda, 18, as well as a third Tijuana high school student, 17-year-old Angel Robles. 

Gomez and Suarez-Ojeda reportedly knew each other for many years and had gone with Robles to Ensenada last Friday to attend a barbecue, Gomez's cousin told the San Diego Union-Tribune. 

The boys reportedly did make it to the barbecue, but it’s not clear what happened after. When they were not heard from, Robles' family called police. 

On Sunday, the boys were discovered shot dead outside a building at a Tijuana apartment complex, according to authorities. A detective reportedly told Gomez’s family the boys had been tortured as well.

Gomez and Suarez-Ojeda were reportedly familiar with the area where they were found, Jorge Alvarez, head of the Baja California General’s Office in Tijuana, told the paper.

“They did not live there, but they came to visit family members, one of them apparently did so frequently,” Alvarez said.

Katheryn Garcia, Gomez’s cousin, said her cousin had never been to the area, however. She called him an “innocent boy” who’d just landed his first job at a car wash in San Diego and wanted to join the Marines.

Suarez-Ojeda had recently graduated high school after initially dropping out and also was an avid soccer player. 

Robles was still in high school and a barista at a local coffee shop, his family told the Union-Tribune. 

A joint GoFundMe has been started for Gomez and Suarez-Ojeda.

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