Alessandra Sampaio, wife of Dom Phillips, tells Brazilian authorities: ‘Please answer the urgency of the moment with urgent actions’
The wife of a British journalist who has gone missing in a remote corner of the Brazilian Amazon notorious for illegal mining and drug trafficking has urged authorities to intensify their search efforts.
“All I can do is pray that Dom and Bruno [Araújo Pereira] are well, somewhere, and unable to continue with their journey because of some mechanical problem, and that all this will end up being just another story in these full lives of theirs.” “We are really worried about him and urge the authorities in Brazil to do all they can to search the routes he was following. If anyone can help scale up resources for the search that would be great because time is crucial.Security forces and members of the Indigenous agency Funai reportedly spent most of Monday searching for the men on a stretch of river near the town of Atalaia do Norte –A navy search team was expected to arrive later, amid a growing public outcry.
The pair started the return trip early Sunday, stopping in the community of Sao Rafael, where Pereira had scheduled a meeting with a local leader to discuss Indigenous patrols to fight the “intense invasions” that have been taking place on their lands, the groups said. The pair were travelling in a new boat with 70 litres of gasoline – “sufficient for the trip” – and were using satellite communications equipment, the groups said.