Brazil: Fishermen Find Bodies of 9 Dead People Adrift Aboard a Boat, Possibly Migrants From Africa

A boat was found adrift off the coast of Brazil, and authorities soon discovered that there were several dead bodies aboard. All of whom are suspected African migrants from Mali and Mauritania. Brazilian police are now investigating the incident and trying to find out who these possible African migrants were.

According to ABC News, the bodies were found by fishermen off Brazil's northern coastal state of Para last Saturday in the Atlantic Ocean. All nine aboard were already dead and already in an advanced state of decomposition, their bodies now in Brazilian custody.

The boat was too big for just nine people, with Brazil's Federal Police believing that the vessel could have carried at least 25 people as they also found several raincoats allegedly not belonging to the nine migrants found aboard.

"Documents and objects found near the bodies indicate that the victims were migrants from the African continent, from the region of Mauritania and Mali," the Federal Police said in a statement. Police also suggested that other nationalities could also be among those who died aboard the boat.

As for the vessel itself, it was described to be a "12-meter (39-foot) white and blue canoe-shaped boat shares the same characteristics of Mauritanian fishing boats known as pirogue." These vessels are often used by West African migrants and refugees fleeing to Spain's Canary Islands. It was suggested that Brazil may not have been the migrants' intended destination.

Boats Carrying African Migrants Often Drift to the Caribbean and Brazil

Even though the destination of these boats is the Canary Islands and not the Americas, these boats often go off course, with the trip being regarded as one of the most dangerous migration routes in the world.

Usually, these boars that go off course are swept away by Atlantic trade winds and currents from east to west. These could lead to these migrant boats drifting in the Atlantic Ocean for months, and those aboard often die of dehydration and malnutrition. It is also not uncommon for people to jump into the ocean out of desperation.

The Associated Press launched a report that found that in 2021 alone, at least seven boats from northwest Africa had been found around Brazil and the Caribbean. All seven boats had dead bodies aboard.

Decomposing Bodies of Dead African Migrants Undergo Forensics Examinations in Brazil

As soon as the boat full of dead migrants was hauled ashore, a forensics team was dispatched to examine the scene, including the boat and the bodies aboard. The same forensics team determined that the boat likely came from West Africa and was carrying African migrants.

Meanwhile, José Roberto Peres, the Federal Police chief in Para state, told reporters that the estimated distance from where its passengers may have lost their way is some 4,800 kilometers, or around 3,000 miles from the Brazilian coast. He also confirmed that forensic investigations are still underway and they are still awaiting results.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Human traffickers conducting a lucrative business in Mauritania | DW Documentary - DW Documentary