Officials suspect drug traffickers in case of missing Brazilian tribe
August 12, 2011
One of the indigenous Amazonian tribes in Brazil was photographed and recorded on video for the first time earlier this year. Unfortunately, the anthropologists are not the only outsiders who have had contact with the tribe. Brazil's National Indian Foundation told news sources that they have been unable to spot any of the native people during multiple flights over the tribe's home, and suspect that drug traffickers may have something to do with it.
"We have done overflights before and they were not scared," Bruno Perez, a FUNAI spokesman told CNN. "We were even able to take pictures of them."
He also reported that their huts and appeared to be untouched, but the organization recovered a backpack that contained an arrow and 45 pounds of drugs. A suspected drug trafficker returned to the scene to collect his bag, only to be arrested, according to The Telegraph.
The tribe's camp is set up near the Peruvian border, where Peruvian authorities have previously spotted groups of armed men. Many suspect that these individuals may have scared the tribesmen off, or worse, killed them.
Many questions have yet to be answered concerning the tribe's unusual disappearance, and people can use international phone cards to place calls to Brazil to talk to their friends and family about the events as they progress.