Both were last seen on June 5
Atalia do Norte, Brazil:
Brazil’s federal police said on Sunday that personal items belonging to a missing British journalist and an indigenous expert were found in the Amazon region where they disappeared a week ago.
The latest development in the case came just hours after the pair’s friends and relatives – freelance journalist Dom Phillips and respected expert Bruno Pereira – placed a watch on a beach in Rio de Janeiro, with a family member saying he hoped was lost. They will emerge from the living forest.
“Items belonging to two missing persons have been found: a health card, black pants, a black sandal and a pair of shoes belonging to Bruno Pereira, and a backpack belonging to Dom Phillips containing a pair of shoes and personal clothing,” federal in Amazonas state Police said in a statement.
Fears are mounting over the fate of 57-year-old Phillips, a veteran contributor to The Guardian newspaper, and 41-year-old Pereira, an expert at Brazil’s government agency for Indigenous Affairs (Fanai), as they disappeared after receiving threats last Sunday. A research trip to the Javari Valley of Brazil.
The remote wilderness area has seen an increase in illegal fishing, logging, mining and drug trafficking.
The Amazonas Fire Department previously told local media that personal effects related to the missing were found “near the home” of Amarildo Costa de Oliveira, the only man arrested so far in the case and who witnesses say chased the men. .
Police said the search team on Sunday covered about 25 square kilometers (10 sq mi) with a “thorough search through forest, roads in the area and flooded vegetation”, especially in the area where Oliveira belonged. A boat was found.
Phillips and Pereira were traveling by boat in the Javari Valley region in the far west of the state of Amazonas, conducting interviews for a book on environmental protection.
He was last seen in early June 5 not far from his destination, the river town of Atalia do Norte.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)