British journalist Dom Phillips and his Brazilian guide Bruno Pereira were killed by firearms. The Brazilian police confirmed this on Saturday, AFP news agency reported. A third suspect has also been arrested in connection with the case.
The pair were on a reporting trip in the Javari Valley deep in the Amazon and were last seen two weeks ago crossing the Itaguai River. After a days-long search, two bodies were found earlier this week, one of which was later determined to be 57-year-old Phillips. The second body was confirmed this Saturday to be 41-year-old Pereira.
According to The Guardian the bodies found were tied to trees. Police said on Saturday Phillips was killed with one bullet and Pereira was killed with three shots.
Also read: Dom Phillips’ work in his beloved Amazon cost him his life
Arrests
After Phillips and Pereira went missing, police arrested two brothers, both illegal fishermen, for illegal possession of weapons and possible involvement in the disappearance of the pair. One of them has since confessed to murdering Phillips and Pereira. The third suspect, who reported himself to a police post in the Javari valley, has not yet been released.
Phillips, who worked as a freelance reporter for, among others, The Guardian and The Washington Post wrote, was in the Brazilian jungle area for a reporting trip. For years he wrote about violence against the peoples living in the Amazon and the environmental problems in the area.
According to human rights groups, Phillips and Pereira were threatened several times during their journey by fishermen and hunters operating illegally in the Amazon.