The minister of the Federal Supreme Court, Luís Roberto Barroso, said this Wednesday (22) that he is very concerned about the loss of sovereignty in the Amazon to organized crime.
During an event at the Escola da Magistratura do Estado in Rio de Janeiro, this Wednesday (22), on freedom of expression and democracy in the digital age, the Supreme Court minister said that he received indigenous leaders from the region this Tuesday ( 21) and that the reports are of attacks against the security of these peoples in the Amazon.
“The reports are very sad. The abandonment of the State, the dismantling of Funai, lack of institutional support and the way in which international gangs are taking over the region. I am very concerned that the sovereignty of the Amazon is being lost not to other countries, which would be bad enough, but to organized crime, it is even worse,” said Barroso.
For the minister, the deaths of indigenist Bruno Araújo Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips reflect a scenario of fear for the indigenous peoples of the Amazon.
Investigations into the deaths of Dom and Bruno
The Criminalistics Institute of the Federal Police (PF) in Brasília should release by Thursday (23) the bodies of indigenist Bruno Araújo Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips.
The experts will still finalize the ballistics tests to determine the distance that the shots were fired. In addition to the forensic examinations, the testimonies of the suspects have helped the police to clarify the dynamics of the crime.
According to PF sources, the third suspect arrested, Jefferson Lima da Silva, told authorities that he and fisherman Amarildo da Costa Oliveira were responsible for shooting the victims. According to him, Pereira even greeted Amarildo minutes before the murder. Shortly afterwards, the indigenist saw the suspect’s boat and instructed the journalist to photograph it – which would have angered the fisherman.
The expertise has already identified that Bruno was hit by three shots and Dom by one. After identifying the bodies, the police also located the boat in which the pair were traveling and which was sunk by the killers. On Friday (17) and Saturday (18), investigators confirmed that the remains found in the forest were those of Dom and Bruno.
*With information from Renata Souza, from CNN
Source: CNN Brasil
