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Dominic Mark Phillips (23 July 1964 – 5 June 2022)[2] was a British freelance journalist. He wrote for The Guardian and The Washington Post,[3] and contributed to The Times,[2] the Financial Times and Bloomberg News,[1] among others.

Key Information

On 5 June 2022, he and Brazilian Bruno Pereira, an expert on indigenous peoples of Brazil, went missing in the remote Javari Valley in the far western part of the state of Amazonas in Brazil, one of the most remote zones in the rainforest. On 14 June, Amarildo da Costa da Oliveira allegedly confessed to shooting and killing Phillips and Pereira and led police to the men's bodies the following day.

Early life and education

[edit]

Phillips was born to Gillian (née Watson) and Bernard Phillips on 23 July 1964, in Bebington, Cheshire. His mother was a Welsh schoolteacher, and his father was an Irish accountant who later became a lecturer at Liverpool Polytechnic.[2] He had a sister and a brother.[2][1] During his youth, Phillips shared his family's interest in music and outdoor activities, forming a series of bands with his brother and friends.[2]

Phillips won a scholarship to St Anselm's College in Birkenhead. He studied literature in a combined degree at Hull University for a few months. He then switched to a course at Middlesex Polytechnic, but gave it up.[2] He travelled around the world, living in Israel, Greece, Denmark and Australia.[1][4]

Career

[edit]

In Liverpool, Phillips set up The Subterranean, a short-lived fanzine, with Neil Cooper in the early 1980s.[4][2] It was named after the Jack Kerouac novel The Subterraneans.[2] In the 1990s, Phillips wrote and edited for Mixmag, where he coined the term "progressive house".[5]

In 2007, Phillips moved to Brazil to finish a book about electronic music.[2] In 2009, he published Superstar DJs Here We Go!: The Rise and Fall of the Superstar DJ, a frontline history of 1990s club culture.[6][4]

Phillips wrote about politics, poverty and cultural development in Brazil. From 2014 to 2016 he contributed to The Washington Post, where he covered Brazil's preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics. He reported on deforestation in Brazil, leading an investigation by The Guardian and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism of large-scale cattle ranches established on cleared forest land.[1][7] His coverage of illegal deforestation in the Amazon[8] was nominated for the 2020 Gabo Award for Journalistic Coverage[9] and was a finalist for the Vladimir Herzog Prize that same year.[10]

Phillips also contributed to The Times,[2] the Financial Times, Bloomberg News,[1] The Intercept, The Observer, The Independent, The Daily Beast, soccer magazine FourFourTwo and energy newswire Platts.[11]

In June 2022, Phillips had been in the Vale do Javari region, researching for a book on sustainable development there. He had received a fellowship from the Alicia Patterson Foundation to write the book, and aimed to finish it by the end of 2022.[12]

Personal life

[edit]

Phillips married a woman named Nuala, whom he later divorced. In 2013, Phillips met Alessandra Sampaio at a party near his home in Santa Teresa, Rio de Janeiro. They married in 2015.[2] He lived in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Salvador.[1]

Murder

[edit]
Main article: Murder of Bruno Pereira and Dom Phillips

Phillips and Brazilian Bruno Pereira, an expert on indigenous peoples of Amazonas, received death threats for helping to protect the people from illegal drug traffickers, miners, loggers, and hunters.[12][13]

Orlando Possuelo, an Indigenous rights activist, said he received a message from Pereira at 6 a.m. on 5 June 2022. Pereira said he and Phillips were going to pass by the riverside community of São Rafael on their way to Atalaia do Norte, in the remote Javari Valley, in the far western part of the state of Amazonas in Brazil, one of the most remote zones in the rainforest. Possuelo arranged to meet Pereira at 8 a.m., but Pereira and Phillips never arrived.[12][13][14] Possuelo said that when they failed to appear, he retraced their steps to the location where they were last seen. Members of an Indigenous surveillance team there told him that a boat belonging to an illegal fisherman had been seen going down the river in the same direction after Pereira's boat passed.[14] The Brazilian embassy in London released a statement that his body had been found on Monday, 13 June,[15] but retracted it the following day, apologizing to Phillips' family for "information that did not prove correct."[16]

On 15 June, a second man named Amarildo da Costa da Oliveira, who was arrested days before in connection with the case, confessed to shooting and killing Phillips and Pereira and revealed the location of their bodies,[17] confirmed by the Federal Police.[18][19][20] The remains were then discovered by the Brazilian authorities, who sent them to the country's capital, Brasília, to be examined.[21][18]

On 17 June, the remains that were discovered were identified as belonging to Phillips; these were authenticated through dental records. He was 57 years old.[22][23] On 18 June, Federal Police confirmed that the second body encountered at the crime scene belonged to Pereira.[24]

Killings of Dom Phillips and indigenous peoples expert Bruno Araujo Pereira[25] were condemned by the Director-General of the UNESCO Audrey Azoulay in a press-release published on the 16 June 2022.[26] According to global monitoring on the safety of journalists by the Observatory of Killed journalist, Phillips was the 1st media professional killed in Brazil in 2022.[27]

Funerals

[edit]

Pereira's funeral was held on 24 June 2022 in Recife, Pernambuco and Phillips' funeral was held on 26 June in Nitéroi, Rio de Janeiro. The bodies of both men were cremated.[28][29] As of 27 June, police were still investigating to determine all of the people responsible for ordering and performing the assassination.[citation needed]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Dom Phillips

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from Grokipedia
Dom Phillips (23 July 1964 – 5 June 2022) was a British journalist and author who reported extensively on Brazil, transitioning from music journalism to environmental issues in the Amazon rainforest. Beginning his career writing about electronic dance music for publications like Mixmag in the 1990s, Phillips relocated to Brazil in 2007 to complete a book on the subject, publishing Superstar DJs Here We Go!: The Rise and Fall of the Superstar DJ in 2009. Over the following decade, he shifted focus to political, social, and ecological challenges in Brazil, contributing articles to The Guardian and other outlets on topics including poverty, indigenous rights, and deforestation. His reporting emphasized the role of indigenous communities in conserving the Amazon, earning recognition such as inclusion in Greenpeace's best environmental journalism selections and a 2021 Alicia Patterson Foundation fellowship for his book project on sustainable forest protection strategies. On 5 June 2022, Phillips disappeared while traveling by boat in the indigenous territory with Brazilian indigenist , investigating illegal fishing operations; their bodies were discovered ten days later, confirming they had been shot, with arrests linking the killings to local fishermen involved in illicit activities. The case underscored risks to journalists probing environmental crimes in remote areas, where enforcement is limited. Phillips' unfinished manuscript, How to Save the Amazon, was completed by colleagues and published posthumously in 2025, amplifying indigenous perspectives on preservation.

Personal Background

Early Life and Education

Dominic Mark Phillips was born on 23 July 1964 in , , . He was the eldest of three children to Gillian Phillips (née Watson), a Welsh woman who worked as a schoolteacher, and Bernard Phillips, an accountant of Irish descent who later became a civil servant. Phillips grew up in the Liverpool area but left college there without completing his studies in the early 1980s, opting instead to travel abroad. He resided temporarily in , , , and , sustaining himself through manual labor including , factory work, and other odd jobs. This period marked the beginning of his exposure to diverse cultures, which later influenced his journalistic pursuits.

Family and Relationships

Dom Phillips was the son of parents who died within months of each other in the late . He had two siblings, sister Sian Phillips and brother Gareth Phillips, along with brother-in-law Paul Sherwood. Phillips' first marriage was to , which ended in prior to his relocation to . He had no children. In the mid-2010s, Phillips began a relationship with Sampaio, a Brazilian specializing in , and the couple later married. They resided together in , where they planned to adopt children. Sampaio survived Phillips and has since continued advocacy work in his memory, including completing his unfinished book on Amazon conservation.

Professional Career

Journalism in the UK and Early International Work

Phillips began his journalism career in the United Kingdom with a focus on music, particularly electronic dance and rave culture. In 1988, while based in Bristol, he founded the fanzine New City Press. He soon transitioned to professional reporting, joining Mixmag, a leading magazine on dance music, where he advanced to editor. As Mixmag editor for much of the 1990s—specifically from 1993 to 1997—Phillips covered the rapid expansion of the rave scene amid its cultural and commercial peak, including club events, DJ profiles, and genre developments. He is credited with popularizing the term "" to describe a subgenre blending with atmospheric elements. His editorial tenure emphasized detailed, insider reporting on the electronic music ecosystem, mentoring writers and capturing the era's innovations in sound and . Phillips' UK work increasingly incorporated international dimensions, as the global spread of culture necessitated coverage beyond Britain, including European festivals and emerging scenes in . By the early 2000s, he contributed freelance pieces to outlets such as , , and Sunday Times, broadening his scope while maintaining a music emphasis. This culminated in his 2007 relocation to , , to complete Superstar DJs Here We Go!, a book chronicling the rise of superstar DJs and the transnational commercialization of , which drew on his networks with international artists, including Brazilian DJs. This Brazilian stint represented Phillips' entry into sustained international reporting, initially tied to music but laying groundwork for later environmental and political coverage in . His freelance model allowed flexibility across borders, prioritizing on-the-ground immersion over institutional affiliation.

Reporting on Brazil and the Amazon

Dom Phillips relocated to São Paulo, , in 2007 to complete a book on , initially focusing his on cultural topics before shifting toward environmental and political reporting. By the mid-2010s, he had moved to Rio de Janeiro and increasingly covered 's Amazon region, drawn by its global ecological significance and escalating threats from , illegal extraction, and governance failures. His work appeared in outlets including , , and , emphasizing on-the-ground investigations into indigenous vulnerabilities and resource conflicts. Phillips' Amazon reporting highlighted the encroachment of illegal activities on protected areas, such as and in the Javari Valley, home to uncontacted tribes. In an August 2018 Guardian article co-reported with indigenous expert , he detailed armed incursions by poachers targeting species like river dolphins and turtles, which exposed isolated groups to violence and disease without adequate federal enforcement. He argued that the lack of river patrols left these populations—estimated at 16 uncontacted tribes—as the world's most vulnerable, reliant on (Brazil's indigenous affairs agency) for protection that often fell short due to underfunding and policy shifts. Political developments under President formed a core theme, with Phillips documenting how relaxed environmental regulations fueled land grabs and fires. A October 2018 piece examined Bolsonaro's electoral support among interests pushing for on indigenous lands and hydroelectric , warning of accelerated loss amid weakened oversight. In March 2019, he reported on indigenous federations uniting against farm encroachments and miner invasions, interviewing leaders who described government rhetoric as enabling invasions that displaced communities and destroyed forests covering over 13% of Brazil's territory. Phillips extended this scrutiny to corporate actors, as in a March 2021 article on meatpacking giant JBS's net-zero emissions pledge amid deforestation-linked supply chains, questioning the feasibility given ongoing cattle ranching expansion in the Amazon. Later reports addressed intersecting crises like the exacerbating . In December 2020, Phillips covered Yanomami reserve invasions by garimpeiros (wildcat miners), where mercury pollution contaminated rivers and health services collapsed, leading to over 500 indigenous deaths from the virus by mid-2021—disproportionate to Brazil's national rate. His approach combined fieldwork with indigenous voices, critiquing institutional failures without endorsing unsubstantiated narratives, often collaborating with local experts to verify claims of systemic neglect. By 2021, Phillips paused freelance assignments to research a , How to Save the Amazon, advocating sustainable models centered on indigenous stewardship as a counter to extractive threats. This body of work positioned him as a chronicler of the region's tipping points, where annual rates peaked at 11,088 square kilometers in under Bolsonaro, per official data.

Major Publications and Ongoing Projects

Phillips authored several investigative articles on , , and political threats to the , primarily for The Guardian and The Washington Post. In a April 13, 2015, Washington Post report, he examined the S11D iron ore mining project in state, highlighting its excavation of 16 square miles of forest and potential displacement of ancient Indigenous sites dating back over 10,000 years. His August 23, 2018, Guardian article "Tribes in deep water: gold, guns and the Amazon’s last frontier" detailed illegal and in the Javari Valley, home to 16 uncontacted tribes, where armed intruders posed risks of disease transmission and violence amid minimal federal enforcement. Other key pieces included a October 24, 2018, Guardian analysis of Jair Bolsonaro's campaign promises to relax environmental regulations and permit on Indigenous lands, raising alarms over accelerated rates that had already surged 47% in by mid-2018; a March 4, 2019, report on unified Indigenous resistance against land encroachments; and a May 5, 2020, examination of strategies to mitigate annual fire seasons, which had consumed over 1 million acres in 2019 alone. As a freelance journalist based in Rio de Janeiro since 2007, Phillips contributed to outlets including , , and , often embedding with Indigenous leaders and documenting causal links between policy shifts and ecological harm, such as weakened enforcement under Bolsonaro correlating with a 22% national increase from August 2019 to July 2020. Phillips's primary ongoing project at the time of his June 2022 death was a exploring practical conservation models in the Amazon, including sustainable initiatives and Indigenous-led patrols that had reduced illegal incursions by up to 80% in monitored reserves. Titled How to Save the Amazon: A Journalist's Fatal Quest for Answers, the manuscript—partially drafted from field research with Indigenous expert —was completed posthumously by a collaborative team of Phillips's colleagues, incorporating his notes, interviews, and audio recordings to emphasize evidence-based solutions like community governance over top-down interventions. The 384-page volume was published in June 2025 by Publishing, prioritizing Phillips's original reporting on threats like illegal fleets depleting by 30-50% annually in the Javari .

The 2022 Amazon Expedition

Context and Purpose of the Trip

Dom Phillips, a British journalist who had reported extensively on environmental and since 2007, was engaged in a multi-year project examining strategies to combat deforestation and related threats in the . His work focused on identifying practical economic models that could replace destructive activities such as and , drawing on collaborations with indigenous communities and local experts. In 2021, Phillips received an Alicia Patterson Foundation fellowship to support this research, which emphasized collective approaches to preserving the ecosystem while supporting local livelihoods. The specific 2022 expedition targeted the Indigenous Territory in Amazonas state, Brazil's largest such reserve, home to over 14,000 indigenous people across multiple ethnic groups and harboring the highest concentration of uncontacted tribes globally. Accompanied by , a former employee of Brazil's National Indian Foundation () with prior experience coordinating protection efforts in the region, Phillips aimed to document firsthand perspectives from riverine and indigenous communities on viable alternatives to illicit economies encroaching on their lands. The pair departed Atalaia do Norte by boat on June 5, 2022, navigating the Itaquaí River to engage with representatives from groups like the Awá, amid a context of heightened vulnerability due to illegal fishing operations and narcotrafficking that had intensified threats to isolated populations. This trip built on Phillips' prior reporting, which had highlighted conflicts between extractive industries and , but centered on constructive solutions rather than confrontation, reflecting his interest in scalable models for Amazon conservation. Pereira's involvement provided essential logistical and cultural navigation, leveraging his established networks to facilitate safe access and authentic interviews essential for the book's emphasis on collaborative preservation efforts.

Disappearance and Initial Search Efforts

On June 5, 2022, British journalist and Brazilian indigenist departed from the Lago do Jaburu community by boat, intending to return to Atalaia do Norte via the Itacoaí River, a journey estimated at three hours. They had stopped earlier at the São Rafael community and were last sighted near São Gabriel da Cachoeira. Upon failing to arrive by 2:00 p.m., Indigenous leaders from São Rafael dispatched an initial search party along the river. The following day, June 6, Phillips's wife, Sampaio, and his sister appealed publicly for urgent assistance, prompting Brazilian authorities to mobilize the Navy and Army for aerial and riverine searches in the region. Two local fishermen were briefly detained and released during early inquiries. By June 7, federal police initiated a formal , deploying a to the remote area plagued by illegal and . Sampaio issued a public plea emphasizing the pair's vulnerability in the isolated terrain. Search operations intensified over the subsequent days, incorporating volunteers and facing logistical challenges in the dense . On June 8, an individual was arrested in possession of drugs and a , though not directly linked at the time. Personal belongings, including a and identified as Phillips's, were recovered on June 10 near a residence in the vicinity, and additional items surfaced in flooded forest areas by June 13. Criticism emerged regarding the efficiency of military-led efforts, with locals and family expressing frustration over delayed and inadequate coverage of the expansive Javari Valley Indigenous Territory.

Murder and Investigation

Discovery of Remains and Initial Findings

On June 15, 2022, Brazilian Federal Police located human remains in the near the Itaquaí River in the region, following directions provided after the confession of suspect Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, who admitted to the killings and burial site. Forensic examinations conducted by the National Institute of Criminalistics in confirmed on June 17, 2022, that one set of remains belonged to Dom Phillips, identified through dental records and anthropological analysis, while the second set was matched to via DNA comparison with family samples. Initial forensic reports indicated the bodies had been decapitated, dismembered, and burned, with Phillips' remains requiring advanced dental forensics due to the advanced state of decomposition and charring; the cause of death was not immediately determined pending further ballistic and toxicological analysis. Federal Police stated that the remains were found in shallow graves approximately 2-3 meters apart, consistent with the suspects' accounts of using a and to dispose of the bodies shortly after the murders on or around June 5, 2022.

Arrests, Confessions, and Suspects

On June 10, 2022, Brazilian federal police arrested Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, a local fisherman known for illegal activities in the Javari Valley, as the primary suspect in the disappearance and presumed murders of Dom Phillips and . Oliveira, who had prior conflicts with Pereira over enforcement against illegal fishing, was detained near the town of Atalaia do Norte after witnesses reported seeing him with the victims' . Four days later, on , 2022, authorities arrested Oliveira's brother, Oseney da Costa de Oliveira, on charges of obstructing and hiding bodies, as he was suspected of assisting in the disposal of evidence following the killings. Oseney surrendered without resistance and was held in Atalaia do Norte. Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira confessed to the murders on , 2022, admitting he shot both victims with a during an altercation on the river and subsequently incinerated their bodies to conceal the crime. He led investigators to the burial site in the , where fragmented human remains were recovered and later confirmed through forensic analysis to include Phillips' via DNA matching. Federal prosecutors formally charged Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira with double aggravated on , 2022, alongside two others—Jânio Freitas de Souza and another associate—for involvement in the killings or , based on statements and linking them to illegal networks opposed by Pereira. Investigations revealed that both Amarildo and associates had informal ties to local governance structures, including temporary contracts for community roles, though no direct state orchestration was substantiated. By November 2024, the case expanded to indict nine individuals total, including the Oliveira brothers, for , criminal association, and evidence tampering, with prosecutors citing confessions and ballistic evidence tying the to Amarildo. However, in September 2024, charges of aggravated were dropped against one , a secondary figure, due to insufficient of participation in the shootings. The primary suspects remain in custody pending , with Amarildo's upheld as central despite claims from his defense of , which federal police investigations have not corroborated. In June 2022, Brazilian federal police arrested Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, who confessed to killing Phillips and Pereira by shooting them during an encounter on the Itaquai River, motivated by a dispute over illegal enforcement. His brother, Oseney da Costa de Oliveira, was also detained for allegedly assisting in hiding the bodies, while Jefferson da Silva Lima later confessed to participating in the murders and led authorities to the victims' remains and sunken boat. These arrests followed an initial investigation linking the killings to retaliation against Pereira's work curbing illicit activities in the Javari Valley Indigenous . By November 2022, federal prosecutors charged Amarildo, Oseney, Jefferson, and fisherman Rubens da Silva Villar—identified as a potential intellectual author—with and concealment of corpses, though Villar initially remained . Additional suspects, including Marcelo Pereira da Silva and Alcir da Silva Amaral, faced charges for body concealment. In June 2023, fresh charges expanded scrutiny to networks involved in fish trafficking, implicating more individuals in the broader context. In September 2024, a Brazilian appeals dropped murder charges against Oseney da Costa de Oliveira due to insufficient evidence tying him directly to the killings, upholding the decision despite family appeals for full accountability; prosecutors filed to reinstate his trial in February 2025. Federal police concluded their two-year investigation in November 2024, indicting nine individuals total, including Amarildo and Jefferson for the homicides and Rubens da Silva Villar—the alleged mastermind—for ordering the crime amid illegal fishing disputes. As of October 2025, Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, Jefferson da Silva Lima, and remaining charged suspects remain in custody awaiting trial in Brazil's federal courts, with no convictions secured three years after the murders; advocates continue pressing for expedited proceedings amid concerns over delays in cases. The acknowledged investigative progress in April 2025 but urged enhanced protection for journalists and indigenists in the region.

Aftermath

Funerals and Memorials

Dom Phillips' funeral was held on June 26, 2022, at Parque da Colina Cemetery in Niterói, near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, three weeks after his murder in the Amazon. Attendees included his wife Alessandra Sampaio, siblings Sian and Gareth Phillips, and brother-in-law Paul Sherwood, with friends and relatives paying final respects amid expressions of grief. The service followed the funeral of his companion Bruno Pereira on June 24, 2022, in Teffé, Amazonas, which drew indigenous leaders and participants who honored Pereira with traditional songs and dances. In response to Phillips' death, Brazil observed a three-day national period of mourning, with flags flown at on public buildings. Memorial events continued on anniversaries of the killings; on June 5, 2023, gatherings occurred in multiple Brazilian cities and to commemorate Phillips and Pereira, focusing on their advocacy for and . A to Phillips was also delivered at the National Union of Journalists' delegate meeting in April 2023 by his niece Domonique Davies. On June 5, 2025, marking three years since the murders, over 100 people assembled at the in Lancaster, —Phillips' hometown—for a commemorative event that included music and reflections on his life and work. These memorials underscored Phillips' legacy in and Amazon conservation, with participants emphasizing the ongoing need for accountability in the region.

Completion of Phillips' Book and Continued Reporting

Following Phillips' murder on June 14, 2022, a group of his colleagues, friends, and widow Alessandra Sampaio undertook efforts to complete his unfinished book manuscript, titled How to Save the Amazon: A Journalist's Fatal Quest for Answers. The book, which Phillips had been researching for three years with input from Indigenous expert , focused on sustainable economic models and collaborative strategies to protect the from and illegal activities. The completion process involved accessing Phillips' notes, recordings, and partial drafts, supplemented by additional reporting from contributors including Jonathan Watts of , who coordinated efforts to fill gaps left by Phillips' death during fieldwork in the Javari Valley. This collective endeavor, described by participants as a solidarity project transforming personal loss into shared advocacy, resulted in the book's publication in May 2025 by Chelsea Green Publishing. The final version emphasized practical solutions like community-led enterprises and policy reforms, drawing on Phillips' interviews with Indigenous leaders and experts, while avoiding unsubstantiated narratives about his killing to prioritize the original environmental focus. In parallel, Phillips' death spurred continued investigative reporting on Amazon governance and threats, including a 2023 cross-border project by journalists from 10 countries under the , which examined networks in the region as a to Phillips and Pereira. This work built on Phillips' themes of illegal fishing, logging, and land encroachment, documenting persistent vulnerabilities in the Javari Valley despite federal interventions. Such efforts highlighted ongoing risks to reporters, with noting 85 press freedom violations in the Amazon since 2022, often linked to obstructions by local actors.

Controversies and Broader Implications

Theories on Motive and Perpetrators

The primary theory advanced by Brazilian federal police and prosecutors posits that the murders stemmed from a confrontation between and illegal fishermen operating in the Javari Valley, a region plagued by , logging, and drug trafficking. Pereira, an expert on Indigenous affairs, had been conducting unauthorized patrols to monitor and deter such activities, which encroached on protected Indigenous territories. On June 5, 2022, he and Phillips encountered suspects engaged in illegal fishing, leading to a perceived threat that escalated to violence; Amarildo da Costa de Oliveira, known as "Pelado," confessed to shooting Pereira first after an argument, then killing Phillips to eliminate witnesses. Investigators have linked the killings to broader criminal networks profiting from resource extraction in the , with evidence including ballistic matches from recovered firearms, witness testimonies, and the suspects' admissions guiding searches to the victims' remains and sunken boat. In November 2024, federal police formally charged Rubén Dario da Silva Villar, alias "," as the alleged mastermind, accusing him of funding and arming the perpetrators—Amarildo and his brother Osenildo—to execute the crime and conceal evidence, motivated by the need to protect illegal fishing and operations that Pereira actively opposed. Eight additional individuals face charges for aiding in body disposal or obstruction, underscoring a coordinated effort rather than isolated . Alternative theories have surfaced amid political debates, particularly from former President and allies, who initially speculated that the deaths resulted from internal conflicts within Indigenous communities or unauthorized entry into restricted areas, downplaying criminal involvement to critique environmental activism. These claims lack empirical support from forensic evidence or confessions and have been repudiated by the victims' families and investigators, who cite Pereira's explicit focus on combating non-Indigenous criminal incursions as the causal trigger. Some observers, including Indigenous leaders, have called for probing deeper ties to cartels using Amazon rivers for trafficking, given the region's overlap of illegal economies, though police reports emphasize localized fishing disputes as the immediate motive without confirmed higher-level orchestration beyond Villar.

Political Debates on Amazon Governance and Responsibility

The murders of Dom Phillips and on June 5, 2022, in the Javari Valley ignited debates over the Brazilian federal government's role in securing remote Amazonian territories against illegal activities such as fishing, mining, and logging. Critics, including environmental NGOs and opposition politicians, argued that policies under President had eroded institutional capacity, with budget cuts to agencies like the National Indian Foundation (FUNAI) and the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama) reducing enforcement presence and emboldening criminal networks. 's administration faced accusations of delayed search efforts, with the initial response criticized for lacking urgency; the president remarked that "something wicked" had occurred but also suggested the victims had ventured into a high-risk area unnecessarily, implying shared responsibility. These events amplified longstanding partisan divides, with left-leaning figures and international observers attributing governance failures to Bolsonaro's emphasis on over conservation, which coincided with a surge in Amazon murders—1,432 in Amazonas state alone in , 74% above the national average—and unchecked mafia-like control in border regions. Defenders of Bolsonaro countered that local criminal elements, including drug traffickers and illegal fishermen directly implicated in the killings, operated independently of federal policy, and that foreign advocacy sometimes exaggerated state culpability to undermine Brazilian . The and groups condemned the murders as symptomatic of broader impunity, urging stronger protections for indigenous guardians and journalists without directly apportioning blame but highlighting systemic under-resourcing. Following Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's inauguration in January 2023, debates shifted toward expectations of reform, with Lula pledging renewed commitment to Amazon security; on the first anniversary of the murders, he announced the creation of an Amazon Security and Protection Force to combat illegal exploitation, framing it as a direct response to vulnerabilities exposed by the case. Administration officials visited the Javari Valley in February 2023 to signal increased oversight, yet indigenous leaders reported persistent threats, stating that perpetrators "would be killed again" under current conditions due to inadequate on-the-ground enforcement. Critics from across the spectrum noted that endures, with only partial convictions of the confessed killers by 2025 and ongoing dominance, questioning whether Lula's initiatives sufficiently address root causes like inter-agency coordination and local beyond rhetorical shifts.

Criticisms of Phillips' Approach and Environmental Advocacy

President criticized Phillips' journalistic approach, stating on June 15, 2022, that the reporter "was frowned upon in the Amazon region" due to his extensive coverage of illegal (garimpo) and other extractive activities, which Bolsonaro implied contributed to local animosity toward him. further remarked that Phillips should have "paid more attention to himself," portraying the journalist's decision to enter remote areas without security as reckless and an "unsavoury adventure" in a "completely wild" environment. These comments suggested that Phillips' emphasis on environmental crimes and indigenous protections overlooked the economic dependencies of local communities on fishing, , and , potentially heightening tensions rather than fostering balanced solutions. Supporters of Bolsonaro echoed this view, framing Phillips' advocacy as antagonistic toward livelihoods in the Amazon, where illegal activities often supplement income amid limited legal alternatives. Then-Vice President described Phillips as "unpopular in the region" and suggested his death was "" from unrelated local conflicts, implying the journalist's outsider perspective failed to account for entrenched social dynamics between indigenous groups, ribeirinhos (riverside dwellers), and illicit operators. Critics of Phillips' method argued it prioritized alarmist narratives on and resource exploitation—such as his reporting on illegal fishing incursions into reserves—over pragmatic engagement with non-indigenous communities reliant on these practices for survival, exacerbating "fabricated" conflicts between stakeholders. Phillips' environmental focus, including support for indigenous-led patrols that restricted access to fishing grounds, drew ire from pescadores (fishermen) who viewed such measures as existential threats to their sustenance in impoverished areas like the Vale do Javari, where overfishing had depleted stocks but alternatives remained scarce. While Phillips advocated sustainable development models in his unfinished book How to Save the Amazon, detractors contended this overlooked the causal role of poverty and weak state presence in driving illicit economies, rendering his prescriptions idealistic and disconnected from ground-level enforcement challenges. These perspectives, primarily from pro-development figures, highlighted a perceived bias in Phillips' work toward elite environmental concerns over the immediate needs of Amazonian underclasses.

References

  1. https://www.irishtimes.com/obituaries/2022/07/02/dom-phillips-obituary-british-journalist-whose-killing-highlighted-the-plight-of-the-amazon/
  2. https://www.rebeccacarterliterary.com/authors/dom-phillips
  3. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2022/06/21/dom-phillips-journalist-environmental-activist-obituary/
  4. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jun/24/dom-phillips-obituary
  5. https://www.the-independent.com/obituaries/dom-phillips-journalist-amazon-dead-b2106057.html
  6. https://www.chelseagreen.com/writer/dom-phillips/
  7. https://apnews.com/article/amazon-brazil-dom-phillips-journalism-bruno-pereira-26efd3892631f4c8660b282a4e1166bd
  8. https://forbiddenstories.org/dom-phillips-wanted-to-save-the-amazon-he-was-killed-for-investigating-illegal-fishing/
  9. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2023/jun/01/bruno-pereira-dom-phillips-amazon-indigenous-patrol-groups
  10. https://latamjournalismreview.org/articles/how-colleagues-of-murdered-journalist-dom-phillips-finished-his-book-on-the-amazon/
  11. https://www.liverpoolirishfestival.com/dom-phillips-a-tribute/
  12. https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2022/06/17/dom-phillips-brazil-dies/
  13. https://www.voanews.com/a/family-bids-farewell-to-british-journalist-murdered-in-the-amazon/6634016.html
  14. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/family-bids-farewell-british-journalist-murdered-amazon-2022-06-26/
  15. https://sumauma.com/en/bia-e-ale-nao-vamos-deixar-bruno-e-dom-morrerem/
  16. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jun/01/alessandra-sampaio-dom-phillips-institute-amazon-brazil
  17. https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/british-journalist-dom-phillips-funeral-brazil-b2109796.html
  18. https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/jun/03/dom-phillips-widow-alessandra-sampaio-amazon-brazil
  19. https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/finishing-dom-phillips-posthumous-book-was-the-hardest-thing-emotionally-co-authors-say/
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  21. https://djhistory.com/read/dom-phillips/
  22. https://theplayground.co.uk/body-found-in-amazon-confirmed-to-be-former-mixmag-editor-dom-phillips/
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  44. https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2022/jun/17/the-disappearance-of-dom-phillips-and-bruno-pereira-a-timeline
  45. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-61779378
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  47. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jun/13/items-belonging-to-dom-phillips-and-bruno-pereira-found-in-amazon
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  53. https://nypost.com/2022/06/17/brazil-police-remains-found-those-of-british-journalist-dom-phillips/
  54. https://www.newsweek.com/dom-phillips-cause-death-yet-undetermined-officials-identify-remains-1717094
  55. https://www.dw.com/en/brazil-police-confirm-human-remains-belong-to-british-journalist/a-62175365
  56. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jun/17/dom-phillips-bruno-pereira-suspects-organised-crime
  57. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-16/dom-phillips-ara%25C3%25BAjo-bruno-pereira-killing-suspect-confesses/101156414
  58. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/suspect-confesses-killing-pair-amazon-leads-police-bodies-official-say-rcna33843
  59. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-61820607
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  63. https://rsf.org/en/brazil-indictment-murders-dom-phillips-and-bruno-pereira-has-come-long-last-stronger-measures-are
  64. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/sep/18/dom-phillips-bruno-pereira-murder-charge-dropped-one-of-three-suspects
  65. https://www.business-humanrights.org/ar/%25D8%25A3%25D8%25AD%25D8%25AF%25D8%25AB-%25D8%25A7%25D9%2584%25D8%25A3%25D8%25AE%25D8%25A8%25D8%25A7%25D8%25B1/brazil-arrested-suspects-confess-participation-in-murder-of-bruno-and-dom-phillips-and-declare-that-bodies-were-incinerated/
  66. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-65809346
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  105. https://www.brasildefato.com.br/2022/06/11/como-comecou-o-conflito-no-vale-do-javari-e-por-que-os-indigenas-decidiram-se-defender/
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