Body of Força Nacional Officer Found After Yanomami River Disappearance

Overview

• Authorities recovered and identified the officer’s body on March 21 in the Yanomami Indigenous Territory of Roraima.
• The victim was Israel Serafim Santos, 41, a Bahia Military Police soldier serving with the Força Nacional in Roraima.
• He went missing on March 19 during an operation against illegal gold mining in the Estação Ecológica de Maracacá after leading a five-person team into the Uraricaá river.
• A police incident report states the team swam because no aircraft could land at the garimpo site, Santos began to drown, and a nearby colleague could not reach him.
• The search used boats, aircraft, ground vehicles and divers, involving more than 20 personnel from the Força Nacional, Roraima Fire Department, Funai, the Armed Forces and the Catrimani II command, as the Casa de Governo and the Justice Ministry issued condolences.