Peru arrests killer of Indigenous Amazon leaders

Email:online@newsofbahrain.com

LIMA: Peruvian authorities have successfully captured one of the men responsible for the 2014 murders of four Ashaninka Indigenous leaders who were killed while defending their territory from illegal logging. The arrest of 61-year-old Jose Carlos Estrada took place on Monday in the eastern Ucayali region. 

Estrada was one of four fugitives sentenced to over 28 years in prison in 2024 for the targeted killings of Edwin Chota, Jorge Rios, Leoncio Quintisima, and Francisco Pinedo.

The original crime occurred on September 1, 2014, when the leaders were murdered in front of their community members near the remote border between Peru and Brazil. 

At the time, the leading Indigenous organization AIDESEP stated the men were killed by illegal loggers for protecting their ancestral lands. Edwin Chota, in particular, had gained international recognition for his dedicated defense of the Amazon rainforest, which is considered the most biodiverse region in the world.

The case has long served as a flashpoint for criticism against the Peruvian government regarding the safety of environmental activists. Authorities have been frequently accused of failing to provide adequate protection for those fighting against deforestation. 

Data from the NGO Global Witness highlights the severity of the situation, noting that at least 54 land and environmental defenders have been killed in Peru since 2012, with more than half of the victims belonging to Indigenous groups.