A British journalist who was reported missing nearly four months ago has reportedly been found.
Rio de Janeiro police said on Monday that Charlotte Alice Peet, 32, was located in a Sao Paulo hostel and had been out of contact with her family voluntarily, the BBC has reported.
The 32-year-old – who had worked as a freelance reporter in Brazil for British news outlets, including The Independent, and Al Jazeera – went missing in early February. Having now been found, she has told police she does not wish to have contact with her family, and the case has now been closed.
She reportedly told a friend she was in Sao Paulo on 8 February but was planning to go to Rio de Janeiro before she then disappeared.
Days later, Ms Peet’s family reached out to her friend to say they had lost contact with her. Local authorities then launched an investigation into her disappearance.
A missing person report was initially lodged at Rio de Janeiro’s Tourist Attention Centre on 17 February before being passed on to Sao Paulo, where Ms Peet was supposed to have been before she went missing.
The Rio de Janeiro Whereabouts Discovery Unit (DDPA) that took over the case said they believe she stayed at a hostel in Copacabana, where she remained until 17 February. From there, she went to another hostel, this time in Botafogo, where she stayed until 24 February. On at least two occasions, she visited bars in Copacabana and Leme.
The Brazilian Foreign Press Association (ACIE) released a statement at the time, expressing their “concern” for Ms Peet after she vanished.
The ACIE said that Ms Peet’s family had provided information about her flight to Brazil as well as a passport photo to aid the investigation.
Information about her whereabouts was collected by tracking the British woman's cell phone. Local media reports police have been able to gain access to photos on her phone, though it is not clear how they did this. The pictures include several selfies and have been shared by police trying to track her down.
However, upon finding her at the Sao Paulo hostel, police told the BBC on Monday that Ms Peet expressed her desire not to have contact with her family and the case had now been closed.
Ms Peet described herself as fluent in Portuguese, with nine years of experience as a journalist, including four years of reporting abroad.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she covered current affairs, economy, health, human rights, technology, and crime in Brazil.
