Brazilian indigenist Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips were murdered on 5 June 2022 while traveling by boat through the Vale do Javari; two brothers were arrested, one confessed and led police to the buried bodies, and further suspects were later charged.
Dom Phillips — Credit: Marcos Corrêa/Presidência da República, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
On 5 June 2022, Brazilian indigenist Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips were murdered during a boat trip through the Vale do Javari, the second-largest indigenous territory in Brazil. The pair had traveled to Lago do Jaburu near a National Indian Foundation surveillance base on the Ituí River, where Phillips planned to conduct interviews for a book on the Amazon's sustainable potential. Two days later they went to the São Rafael community for a planned meeting with a local fisherman about joint surveillance work between riverine and indigenous communities in the Javari Valley, an area affected by invasions and criminal activity. The fisherman was absent, and the two men disappeared while traveling along the Itaguaí River toward Atalaia do Norte.
Bruno Pereira, born in Recife, Pernambuco, on 15 August 1980, was a career civil servant with FUNAI (Brazil's National Indian Foundation) and one of the country's leading experts on isolated or recently contacted indigenous peoples. In 2019 he led the largest expedition to contact isolated indigenous groups in 20 years, but was dismissed from his post that October under pressure from ruralist sectors linked to the government of Jair Bolsonaro. Indigenous entities reported he had been repeatedly threatened by gold miners and fishermen. Dom Phillips, born in Bebington, Cheshire, on 23 July 1964, was a freelance journalist who had contributed to the Financial Times, The Guardian, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. He had lived in Brazil since 2007.
Search efforts began on 5 June, organized by the Union of Indigenous Organizations of the Javari Valley (Univaja), while the Federal Police confirmed an investigation without providing details. On 7 June, the Military Police searched the home of a man known as "Pelado" following an anonymous tip; he was arrested on unrelated drug and ammunition charges, and blood traces were found on his seized speedboat. Items belonging to the victims were found near his residence on 12 June. His brother was arrested on 14 June, and on 15 June the first suspect confessed, disclosing the location of the buried bodies and the sunken boat. A third suspect was arrested on 18 June, and the remains were formally identified on 22 June.
On 21 July 2022, prosecutors in the Federal Court of Tabatinga, Amazonas, charged three people with the murders and concealment of the bodies, stating Pereira was shot three times, including once in the back, while Phillips was killed because he was accompanying Pereira. Police also indicted an unnamed former head of Brazil's indigenous protection agency for allegedly failing to act on information that could have prevented the killings. Two additional suspects were later charged, one of whom was alleged to be the mastermind of an illegal transnational fishing network spanning Brazil, Colombia, and Peru.
The case drew extensive domestic and international media coverage, with criticism directed at the Brazilian federal government over delayed search efforts and the weakening of environmental protection institutions.
Dom Phillips born in Bebington, Cheshire, United Kingdom.
2019
Pereira leads the largest expedition to contact isolated indigenous peoples in 20 years; later dismissed from his FUNAI post that October.
2022-06-05
Pereira and Phillips arrive at Lago do Jaburu; they later disappear while traveling by boat along the Itaguaí River toward Atalaia do Norte. Search teams organized by Univaja begin looking for them.
2022-06-07
Military Police search the residence of a suspect known as "Pelado" after an anonymous tip; he is arrested on drug and ammunition charges and his speedboat, containing blood traces, is seized.
2022-06-12
Firefighters find a backpack, laptop, and sandals belonging to the victims near the suspect's house.
2022-06-13
Phillips' family is wrongly informed by the Brazilian Embassy in the UK that the bodies had been found.
2022-06-14
Oseney da Costa de Oliveira, brother of the first suspect, is arrested.
2022-06-15
Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira confesses to the murders and leads police to the buried bodies and the sunken boat.
2022-06-18
A third suspect, Jefferson da Silva Lima, is arrested.
2022-06-22
Forensic investigation concludes with the identification of the bodies.
2022-07-21
Public Prosecutor's Office charges three people with the murders and concealment of the bodies in the Federal Court of Tabatinga, Amazonas; police also indict an unnamed former head of Brazil's indigenous protection agency.
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Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
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People
Dom Phillips
VICTIM
British freelance journalist killed on 5 June 2022 in the Vale do Javari.
Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira
CHARGED
Arrested and later confessed to involvement in the murders; charged along with two others for the murders and concealment of the bodies.
Jânio Freitas de Souza
CHARGED
Charged with the murders of Pereira and Phillips.
Jefferson da Silva Lima
CHARGED
Third suspect arrested on 18 June 2022 and later charged in connection with the murders.
Ruben Dario da Silva Villar
CHARGED
Charged with the murders; alleged mastermind behind the killings and reportedly responsible for an illegal transnational fishing network between Brazil, Colombia, and Peru.
Bruno Pereira
VICTIM
Brazilian indigenist and FUNAI civil servant killed on 5 June 2022 in the Vale do Javari.
Oseney da Costa de Oliveira
CHARGED
Brother of Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira; arrested on 14 June 2022 and later charged with the murders and concealment of the bodies.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
Archival records
portrait victim
Dom Phillips
Credit: Marcos Corrêa/Presidência da República, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0 · Source
Brazilian indigenist Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips were murdered on 5 June 2022 while traveling by boat through the Vale do Javari; two brothers were arrested, one confessed and led police to the buried bodies, and further suspects were later charged.
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