Personal belongings of missing British reporter and expert found in Brazil

Divers from the fire department of Brazil A backpack and a laptop were found Sunday in a remote area of ​​the Amazon where indigenous expert Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips disappeared a week ago, firefighters said.

The backpack was tied to a tree that was partially submerged, a firefighter told reporters in Atalaia do Norte, the closest city to the search area, which is near the Valle del Javarí indigenous territory. It is flood season in the region and part of the jungle is flooded.

Look: Police find blood on the boat of a suspect for the disappearance of a journalist and an expert in the Amazon

Agents of the Federal Police transported the objects by boat to watchtower do Norte in the afternoon.

The local indigenous association, for which Pereira was working when he disappeared, confirmed that firefighters’ divers found a backpack, but could not determine at this time who it belonged to. There are only a few low-income riverside communities in the area, where it is unusual to find devices such as laptops.

Previously, the police found traces of blood in the boat of a fisherman, who is the only suspect arrested, as well as organic matter of apparent human origin within the river. Both materials undergo forensic analysis. No further details have been released.

Pereira, 41, and Phillips, 57, were last seen near the entrance to the indigenous territory, which borders Peru and Colombia. Both returned alone in a boat on the Itaguaí River to Atalaia do Norte, but they never arrived.

The area has been the site of violent conflict between fishermen, poachers and government agents. Violence has been on the rise at a time when drug-trafficking groups are vying for control of waterways used to transport cocaine, although the Itaguaí is not known to be a smuggling route.

Source: Elcomercio

Ronald Payne

I, Ronald Payne, am a journalist and author who dedicated his life to telling the stories that need to be said. I have over 7 years of experience as a reporter and editor, covering everything from politics to business to crime.