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Manhunt for Amazon pirate gang who shot dead adventurer on solo kayak trip

Emma Kelty, 43, disappeared after sending a distress signal 150 miles west of the Brazilian jungle city of Manaus
Emma Kelty, 43, disappeared after sending a distress signal 150 miles west of the Brazilian jungle city of Manaus

A jungle manhunt was under way today to capture the remaining members of a pirate gang who shot and killed a London headteacher trying to kayak the Amazon river.

Emma Kelty, 43, was paddling solo 4,000 miles down the world’s largest river when she suddenly disappeared without a trace 150 miles west of jungle city Manaus in northern Brazil last Wednesday.

Police now believe she was set upon by a gang of seven armed men after stopping to camp for the night on a remote beach.

A 17-year-old, who was arrested on Monday, reportedly confessed to being part of the group of “pirates” that ambushed her after she pitched her tent on a sandbank of the Solimoes river near the Lauro Sodre village.

Brazilian police said he confessed that the gang shot Ms Kelty twice with a sawn-off shotgun before stealing her belongings and dumping her body in the fast-flowing waters.

Emma Kelty was shot dead 'for her goPro camera' on the kayaking adventure (@emmatamsinkelty)
Emma Kelty was shot dead 'for her goPro camera' on the kayaking adventure (@emmatamsinkelty)

The group then tried to sell what they had stolen, including two mobile phones, a computer tablet and a GoPro camera, in several nearby communities, according to the teenager.

Last night police arrested two more suspects, but were still hunting four other members of the gang. Ms Kelty’s body has not been found.

Adventurer Emma Kelty disappeared while kayaking in the Amazon
Adventurer Emma Kelty disappeared while kayaking in the Amazon

Military police commander Coronel Alonso Ramos said that under interrogation the men confessed to cutting Ms Kelty’s body into pieces before dumping them into the river in an attempt to hide the crime.

He said: “They said they cut her up and threw her in the river, but that those who did it are two other men who are still on the run and hiding in the jungle.”

The final picture she posted online on Sept 10 shows her tent on an island on the river in heavy rain (Twitter)
The final picture she posted online on Sept 10 shows her tent on an island on the river in heavy rain (Twitter)

Ivo Martins, the civil police chief in charge of the investigations, added that the men said they had intentionally killed the woman in order to steal from her.

He said: “The statement of one of the offenders reports that after she was shot she didn’t talk, she just whimpered.

“Because of this, they dragged her from the tent where she had been sleeping until the group’s canoe, and dumped her about 100 metres out into the river. All the materials that were in her possession were stolen.”

In a statement, her brothers Piers and Giles and her sister Natasha said they were “extremely proud” of their sibling and that she was “dearly loved”.

Her canoe was found by navy sailors who launched a search operation (Brazilian Navy)
Her canoe was found by navy sailors who launched a search operation (Brazilian Navy)

They said: “Emma was an active and determined sister who challenged herself, latterly through her adventures on the Pacific Coast Trail, as well as in the South Pole and Amazon River.

“In a world that is today a much smaller place, the explorer in our sister found herself seeking ways to prove that challenges were achievable. We are extremely proud of our sister who was dearly loved by us all and her strength will be sorely missed.

“We wish to give our immense thanks to the Brazilian Navy, Police and Foreign Office for their action and support.”

Ms Kelty, an experienced adventurer who sold her Finchley flat and quit her job at Knollmead Primary School, Surbiton to go travelling, had been documenting her trip in a series of posts on her blog and social media.

She had only begun serious kayaking earlier this year, just weeks after becoming the sixth woman to ski unassisted to the South Pole in January.