Dom Phillips: Blood found in search for British journalist missing in Amazon

Local authorities discovered traces of blood on the boat of a suspect arrested in connection with their disappearance
A photograph shows British journalist Dom Phillips who went missing in Amazon jungle
via REUTERS
Daniel Keane10 June 2022

Traces of blood have been found on the boat of a suspect arrested in connection with the disappearance of a British journalist and an indigenous expert in the Amazon rainforest, police have said.

Mr Phillips and Mr Pereira were on a reporting trip in the Javari Valley, a remote jungle area near the Peruvian and Colombian border that is home to the world’s largest number of uncontacted indigenous people. The region is currently experiencing a surge in violence driven by miners, gold diggers and drug traffickers.

BRAZIL-AMAZON-INDIGENOUS-MEDIA-MISSING
Veteran foreign correspondent Dom Phillips (C) talks to two indigenous men in Aldeia Maloca
AFP via Getty Images

Local authorities investigating their disappearance found traces of blood on the boat of fisherman Amarildo da Costa, known as “Pelado”, who was arrested and questioned by police earlier this week.

He has since been charged with illegal possession of restricted ammunition.

Federal police on Thursday said a forensic officer and state police were checking for “possible genetic material” on the boat with the reagent Luminol, which reveals blood stains.

BRAZIL-MISSING-MEDIA-INDIGENOUS
BRAZILIAN FEDERAL POLICE/AFP via

“The material collected is on its way to Manaus,” the capital of the Amazonas state region, for expert analysis, the statement added.

A detective working on the case told the Reuters news agency that police were probing whether the blood on the boat was human or not.

Mr Da Costa’s lawyer, Davi Oliveira, told the news agency his client was not involved in the disappearance of Phillips and Pereira.

Six other men have been questioned in relation to the case, police said.

BRAZIL-MISSING-MEDIA-INDIGENOUS
Mauruna, Matis and Canamari indigenous groups search for the missing pair
AFP via Getty Images

“The fight for the preservation of the Amazon forest and of the Indigenous groups belongs to all of us,” the three-time World Cup winner wrote on Twitter.

“I am moved by the disappearance of Dom Phillips and Bruno Ferreira, who dedicate their lives to this cause. I join the many voices that make the appeal to intensify the search.”

Mr Phillips, 57, has reported from Brazil for more than a decade and has been working on a book about preservation of the Amazon.

Earlier this week, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro drew criticism when describing the two men’s work in the Amazon as an “adventure.”

“Really, just two people in a boat in a completely wild region like that is not a recommended adventure. Anything could happen. It could be an accident, it could be that they have been killed,” he said in an interview with television network SBT.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in