Three charged for the murder of journalist Dom Phillips and Amazon expert Bruno Pereira

Three individuals named Amarildo da Costa Oliveira, Oseney da Costa de Oliveira, and Jefferson da Silva Lima, arrested for the murder of British journalist Dom Phillips and indigenous expert Bruno Pereira in the jungles of Amazon, Brazil last month, have been booked by the authorities.

According to the Brazilian public prosecutors, Dom (57) and Bruno (41) were killed on the boat on the Itaquai River whilst returning to the city. Reportedly, Bruno was killed after three bullets were pumped into his body, including one in the back; meaning, he had no possibility of defending himself. Meanwhile, Dom was only killed because he was privy to Bruno's murder.

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"Dom was killed simply because he was with Bruno, in order to ensure impunity for the previous crime." said the prosecutors.

As reported previously by WION, Dom and Bruno were on an expedition in the remote region of Javari Valley, a remote rainforest area near the Colombia-Peru border. It is believed to be the habitat of the world's biggest population of uncontacted indigenous people.

However, lately, the region has turned into a hotbed of criminal activities as illegal fishermen, gold-diggers, miners and loggers fight to usurp the gifts of the Amazon.

Dom was researching for a book

Dom had been conducting research for a book titled, 'How to save the Amazon' and Bruno was helping him communicate with the local people. It was the second time these two had paired up, having previously worked together in 2018.

However, on the way back to the city, the duo stumbled upon the suspects, who were illegally fishing in the area and asked for a photograph. Enraged that they would be exposed, the killers shot both of them down and buried their bodies, to escape the arrest.

It was only after 10 days that the bodies were recovered amid a huge uproar in the international community.

Read More:Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira: Brazil police say bodies found in Amazon

Meanwhile, the Brazilian press is of view that the killings were ordered bythe ringleader of an illegal fishing network. The authorities are still on the lookout for other suspects and believe that a few more might have been involved in the shooting as well as the hiding of the bodies.

(With inputs from agencies)

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