AUTHORITIES IN BRAZIL ID JOURNALIST’S REMAINS
Federal police said Friday that human remains found in Brazil’s remote Amazon have been identified as belonging to British journalist Dom Phillips, who went missing almost two weeks ago along with a Brazilian Indigenous expert in a case that drew world attention.
Additional remains found at the site near the city of Atalaia do Norte have not yet been identified but are expected to belong to Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira, 41. The pair were last seen June 5 on their boat on the Itaquai river, near the entrance of the Javari Valley Indigenous Territory, which borders Peru and Colombia.
“The confirmation (of Phillips’ remains) was made based on dental examinations and anthropological forensics,” Federal Police said in a statement. “Work is ongoing for a complete identification of the remains so we can determine the cause of death, and also the dynamics of the crime and the hiding of the bodies.”
The remains were found Wednesday after fisherman Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, nicknamed Pelado, confessed he killed Phillips, 57, and Pereira, and led police to the site were the remains were found. He told officers he used a firearm to commit the crime. Police also arrested Pelado’s brother, fisherman Oseney da Costa de Oliveira.
The remains arrived in the capital city of Brasilia on Thursday for examination.
The area where Phillips and Pereira went missing has seen violent conflicts between fishermen, poachers, and government agents.
Federal police said others may have participated in the crime but that organized criminal groups did not appear to be involved.