Human remains found during search for journalist and guide
June 16, 2022
One of the suspects in the case of a British journalist and Brazilian indigenous expert who went missing in the Amazon has said he was involved in their murder, authorities said late Wednesday.
The detained suspect also led police to "human remains" that would be examined.
The remains were discovered as part of the investigation into the disappearance ofBritish journalist Dom Phillips and indigenous expert Bruno Pereira.
Pereira, 41, and Phillips, 57, were last seen on June 5 near the entrance of the Javari Valley Indigenous Territory, which borders Peru and Colombia.
Forensic analysis
"I have just been informed by the federal police that human remains were found at the site where excavations were being carried out. They will undergo forensic analysis. Later today, those responsible for the investigations will hold a press conference in Manaus," Brazil's Justice Minister Anderson Torres said on Twitter.
On Monday, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said that entrails were found in the water during search operations. This was not confirmed by police.
The day before, police said they found personal effects belonging to Phillips and Pereira.
Suspects arrested
Brazil's federal police said Tuesday they had arrested a second suspect in connection with the disappearance of the two men in the remote area of the Amazon.
The suspect, Oseney da Costa de Oliveira, is a fisherman. He is the brother of the prime suspect in the case, Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, nicknamed "Pelado." Both are aged 41.
Federal police later said that one of the two men confessed to having buried the pair in the jungle.
Suspect Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira "recounted in detail the crime that was committed and indicated the place where he buried the bodies," head of federal police in the state of Amazonas Eduardo Alexandre Fontes said.
Fontes added that the location is "very hard to reach."
Bolsonaro draws criticism for comments
Bolsonaro drew criticism on Wednesday for saying Phillips was "disliked" for his reporting on the region and should have been more careful.
"That Englishman was disliked in the region, because he wrote a lot of articles against illegal gold miners (and) environmental issues," Brazil's president said in an interview for journalist Leda Nagle's YouTube channel.
"A lot of people didn't like him. He should have more than redoubled the precautions he was taking. And he decided to go on an excursion instead," he said.
Opposition lawmaker Orlando Silva responded saying that "the victims are not the ones to blame."
"The government has an obligation to protect the country and not incentivize the criminals controlling the region."
sdi/jsi (AP, Reuters)