'King of the jungle' influencer busted for 'murder' after 16 years on the run

An influencer with more than 300,000 followers has been arrested on suspicion of murderafter spending 16 years on the run.

Reinaldo da Silva Melo, who was wanted over the murder of Fábio Gomes da Silva on December 12 2009, was located in a jungle region ofBrazil on Wednesday. According to police, the alleged killing was motivated by revenge as he believed Fábio was involved in the murder of his father Arlindo Hortêncio de Melo in 2004.

The murder happened in Paulo Ramos, north of Brasilia, Brazil, with Reinaldo then vanishing into the wilderness and remaining on the run for more than a decade-and-a-half.

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During this time, even though he was on the run, he got married and had three children, while he set himself up as an influencer known as the ‘King of Juquira’. The juquira is a type of crop found in the Amazon region and he was championed for the way he was able to pick and clean them. In his videos he also shared behind-the-scenes footage of his work, as well as the way he lives his life on the farm.

His videos showed his lifestyle as a farmer clearing fields with a scythe, blending humour with rural culture. He quickly built up a following of more than 317,000 Instagram fans and 283,000 followers on TikTok, and all the time he remained elusive to law enforcement.

But police did finally track him down in the rural area of Olho d'Água das Cunhãs. The arrest was made by the Bacabal Civil Police.

The influencer currently remains in police custody and a note has been written on his social media, saying that the legal process is being carried out with the aim that everything will be "clarified".

It read: “The King of Juquira hereby clarifies to the public that, due to legal issues, he is currently deprived of his freedom. We inform you that all appropriate legal measures are already being taken by his defence, in the confidence that everything will be duly clarified.

"We ask for everyone's understanding and respect during this delicate time, avoiding hasty judgements. We remain confident in justice and are grateful for the messages of support received so far.”

Maranhão Civil Police have taken him into custody but have not released more details. "After legal procedures at the police station, the suspect was sent to a prison in the region," read a police statement.