SJefferson da Silva Lima (left), a third suspect in the killing of British journalist Dom Phillips and Brazilian indigenous expert Bruno Pereira, is escorted to a hearing in Atalaia do Norte, Amazonas State, Brazil, on June 18, 2022. Photo: AFP

Grieving family and friends paid their last respects Sunday to British journalist Dom Phillips, who was murdered in the Amazon earlier in June along with an Indigenous expert.

Phillips, 57, and Bruno Pereira, 41, were shot dead while returning from an expedition in a remote region of the rainforest that is plagued by drug trafficking, illegal gold mining and fishing.

"Dom will be cremated in the country he loved, Brazil, which he had chosen as home," his widow, Brazilian Alessandra Sampaio, told reporters through tears after his funeral at the Parque da Colina cemetery outside Rio de Janeiro.

"Dom was a very special person, not only for defending what he believed in as a professional, but also for having a huge heart and a great love for humanity," Sampaio said. 

"Let's celebrate the sweet memory of Dom and his presence in our lives."

The journalist's sister Sian Phillips said he was killed "because he was trying to tell the world what was happening to the Amazon and its people."

Three suspects have been arrested in the crime, including a fisherman who confessed to burying the bodies and led investigators to the scene.

Sampaio said the family will pay close attention to the investigation into the murder of her husband and his colleague, thanking all the Indigenous people who helped look for the two men before their remains were found.

The disappearance of Phillips and Pereira on June 5 sparked an international outcry. 

Activists have blamed the killings on President Jair Bolsonaro for allowing commercial exploitation of the Amazon at the cost of the environment and law and order.

AFP