Justice for the Amazon: Colombian Fish Trader Charged in Murders of Indigenous Advocate and Journalist
Brazilian prosecutors have pressed charges against Ruben Dario Villar, a Colombian fish trader, for his alleged involvement in the 2022 killings of Indigenous peoples advocate Bruno Pereira and British journalist Dom Phillips in the Amazon. The victims went missing on June 5, 2022, with Phillips being shot and killed while researching a book on rainforest conservation. Villar is accused of planning the murders, which were reportedly motivated by Pereira's environmental law enforcement efforts in the Javari Valley Indigenous Territories, where Villar financed an illegal fishing operation. The book that Phillips was working on, titled "How to Save the Amazon," has been completed by his colleagues and is set to be published in the U.S. on June 10. The prosecutors described the murders as vile and cruel, with no chance of defense for the victims. Villar has been in custody since 2022 and has denied any involvement in the crimes.