Traces of blood have been found on the boat of a suspect arrested in connection with the disappearance of a British journalist and a Brazilian indigenous expert in the Amazon, authorities said, following intensified calls to intensify the search.

Dom Phillips, 57, a regular contributor to The Guardian Newspaper, and Bruno Pereira, 41, a specialist in indigenous peoples, were reported missing on Sunday, June 5, 2022, after they ventured into the middle of the Amazon rainforest.

A statement by Brazil’s Police noted that “Traces of blood were found on the boat of Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, 41”, and also added that the suspect known as “Pelado”, is under police custody. “The material collected is on its way to Manaus”, which is the capital of the Amazonas state region, for expert analysis, the statement added.

Heightened Fears Over Police Statement

The statement was accompanied by images of investigators taking photos of what appeared to be a small bloodstain on a blue tarp inside a motorboat with peeling paint.

According to reports, the statement is an unattractive twist in the ongoing search for the two men, whose fate remains unknown. The Brazilian authorities disclosed that they are hopeful of finding the pair alive, but were also quick to add that it did not exclude any outcome, including that of homicide, in a region where trafficking is rife.

High-profile personalities and environmental and human rights groups rallied to the cause, urging President Jair Bolsonaro (Brazil’s President) to step up the search. “Where is Dom Phillips? Where is Bruno Pereira?” asked the journalist’s sister, Sian Phillips, in a statement to the media during a gathering of around 30 people in front of Brazil’s embassy in London. “We want the UK authorities to put pressure on the Brazilian government”, she added, before she and other family members were received by the ambassador.

Sian Phillips further said “We want to carry on with the search. We want to find out what is happening to them and we want anyone responsible for any criminal act to be brought to justice. We want a persistent deep and open investigation”. She blamed the Brazilian authorities for delaying the search but said they “all have hope” that the pair will be found.

“He is a great writer and journalist. He is a caring man. He cares about the environment. He loves Brazil”, Sian Phillips said of her brother (Dom Phillips), adding that “He’s a great guy and we love him with all our heart”. Additionally, Paul Sherwood, Phillips’ brother-in-law, told reporters in an interview that “We’ve been assured that everything has been done that can be done”.

Phillips and Pereira went missing in the Javari Valley in Amazonas state, located in the West of the Amazon basin, near Peru. Witnesses account suggested that they saw the suspect speeding by in a boat going in the same direction as Phillips and Pereira when they were last seen. Police said the man is under arrest for possessing unlicensed caliber ammunition and drugs. As it stands, the remote region is experiencing an escalation in armed violence due to the presence of miners, gold diggers, poachers and drug traffickers.