Brazilian authorities said that a fisherman has now become the suspect of murder after confessing that he killed the two men that went missing in the Amazon, British journalist Dom Phillips and Brazilian indigenous affairs expert Bruno Araujo Pereira.
Federal police in the region identified the suspect as Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira and they noted that he confessed on Tuesday night. The suspect indicated where the bodies of veteran correspondent Phillips and Pereira had been buried.
Suspect Confesses to Murder
The day after the suspect's confession, he took police to the area where the two victims were allegedly killed, which was an area that was 100-minute away by speedboat and a three-kilometer trek into the jungle. Federal Police representative Eduardo Alexandre Fontes said that officers were now excavating the area and discovered human remains.
The official noted that the findings will be sent to Brasilia for forensic analysis on Thursday but noted that police could not confirm the deaths of Phillips and Pereira until the analysis was completed. Law enforcement personnel refused to give any further details on Amarildo or how he allegedly killed the two men, as per CNN.
Fontes was previously questioned why authorities did not mention that indigenous people were helping in the search mission. The official said that it had been a mistake not to acknowledge their "fundamental" contribution to the investigation.
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The two victims first went missing on June 5 during a trip in the Javari Valley, which is located in the far western part of Amazonas state. The two were last seen in the Sao Rafael community, which is a two-hour boat ride from Atalaia do Norte city. Prior to their vanishing, they were accompanying an indigenous patrol in the Itaquai river organized to prevent invasions from illegal fishermen and hunters on the Javari Valley Indigenous Land.
According to the Washington Post, the fisherman who confessed to killing the two men said that he ambushed them in an uninhabited stretch of a river leading to the city of Atalaia do Norte. Amarildo, 41-year-old, who is also known by the nickname "Pelado," said that prior to killing the two men, he made threats against Pereira.
Missing Men in the Amazon
Detective Guilherme Torres said that the priority of investigators and law enforcement officers was to locate the two men alive. However, he noted that, unfortunately, that was no longer possible, bringing sad news to the family of the victims, their friends, and the international press.
Indigenous people mourned the announcement as they collaborated with Pereira whose struggle against illegal invasions was being documented by Phillips. The local Indigenous association, Univaja, released a statement saying that the death of the victims was an "incalculable loss."
Pelado's family said that he previously denied any wrongdoing and claimed that police tortured him to try to get a confession. Torres noted that the boat of the victims was filled with bags of dirt so that it would not sink. The engine was also removed, said investigators.
Later, a news conference was held at Brazil's federal police headquarters located in Manaus that included military leaders who joined the effort to find the victims. A frequent critic of journalists and Indigenous experts, President Jair Bolsonaro, drew criticism for the government not getting involved in the investigation fast enough.
On Wednesday, Bolsonaro also criticized Phillips in an interview, saying without evidence that locals in the area where he went missing did not like him. He added that the journalist should have been more careful in the region, the Associated Press reported.
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