Two years after Shanquella Robinson‘s tragic death in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, her family’s lawyer has filed a lawsuit against the six friends who were on the trip with her.
According to The Charlotte Observer, a press release stated that the victim’s mother Sallamondra Robinson’s attorney, Sue-Ann Robinson (they share no relation), initiated legal action against her daughter’s friends now known as “The Cabo Six” on Oct. 28.
The case against Khalil Cooke, Malik St Patrick Dyer, Wenter Essence Donovan, Alysse Michelle Hyatt, Daejhanae Jackson and Nazeer Wiggins includes several counts of crimes: wrongful death, battery, negligence, conspiracy and emotional distress. In addition, the U.S. Department of State and the FBI are also being called out in the lawsuit.
“This lawsuit is not just about seeking justice for Shanquella Robinson; it’s about holding accountable those who were entrusted with the duty to investigate, act, and protect the interests of U.S. citizens abroad,” Robinson said. “The heartbreaking details of Shanquella’s death and the subsequent mishandling by federal authorities only add to the family’s grief, and they deserve both full transparency and justice.”
The family aims to get compensatory and punitive damages “to address the significant emotional and financial impact this incident has had,” per the press release.
As Blavity reported, Shanquella and her friends visited Cabo in November 2022. While on the trip, they got into a disagreement that turned physical, which was captured on video and didn’t align with the story told to Sallamondra, who received the devasting news about her daughter via phone.
“They said she wasn’t feeling well. She had alcohol poisoning,” Salamondra said in an interview with Queen City News. “They couldn’t get a pulse. Each one of the people that was there with her was telling different stories.”
Following an autopsy, the FBI and Mexico officials shared with Shanquella’s family that she was beaten to death.
“When the autopsy came back, they said it didn’t have anything to do with the alcohol,” Salamondra told Queen City News. “[They] said that she had a broken neck and her spine in the back was cracked. She had been beaten.”
No arrests have been made at this time.
