The Federal Police reported this Saturday morning (18) that Jefferson da Silva Lima, known as “Pelado da Dinha”, surrendered to the Police Station of Atalaia do Norte, in the Vale do Javari region, west of Amazonas. He is the third suspect involved in the murders of indigenist Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips.
Lima had an arrest warrant issued by the Justice of Amazonas and was on the run. Now, he will be questioned by investigators and then forwarded to a custody hearing. In addition to him, fishermen Oseney da Costa de Oliveira, known as Dos Santos, 41, and Amarildo da Costa Pereira, known as Pelado, also 41, are also arrested for involvement in the death and concealment of the bodies. So far, only Amarildo has confessed to the crime.
Yesterday (17), experts confirmed that part of the remains found in the Amazon belong to the English journalist Dom Phillips. The material was identified by technicians from the National Institute of Criminalistics, in Brasília, by means of an examination of the dental arch.
The PF also informed that the forensic work continues to identify the human remains that belonged to the indigenist Bruno Araújo Pereira.
“Confirmation was based on the examination of forensic dentistry combined with forensic anthropology. Work is underway to fully identify the remains, to understand the causes of death, as well as to indicate the dynamics of the crime and concealment of the bodies,” the PF reported.
murders
Dom Phillips, who was a contributor to the British newspaper The Guardian, and Bruno Pereira, a licensed servant of the Fundação Nacional do Índio (Funai), were last seen on June 5, in the region of the Vale do Javari indigenous reserve, the second largest country, with more than 8.5 million hectares. They were moving from the riverside community of São Rafael to the city of Atalaia do Norte (AM), when they disappeared without a trace.
The indigenist denounced that he was being threatened in the region, information confirmed by the PF, which opened an investigative procedure on the complaint. Bruno Pereira was working as a collaborator for the Union of Indigenous Organizations of Vale do Javari (Univaja) – an entity maintained by the indigenous people of the region. Among his missions was to prevent illegal hunting and fishing in the reserve, as well as other criminal practices. The Vale do Javari Indigenous Land concentrates the largest number of isolated or recently contacted Indians on the planet and any approach with non-Indians can trigger a process of extermination of these peoples, either through the spread of diseases or direct confrontation.
According to the authors of the crime, the motivation for the murder of Bruno and Dom would have been precisely their actions in denouncing illegal access and exploitation of the reserve. The PF even said, this Friday (17), that there would be no masterminds or participation of criminal organizations. The conclusion, however, was rejected by Unijava, which, in a statement, reported that data had been passed on about criminal organizations that were operating in the region.
