The festive season took a grim turn for a family in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil, when a seemingly innocuous Christmas cake became the suspected instrument of a triple homicide and triple attempted murder. Zeli Dos Anjos, 61, prepared a traditional Brazilian dessert to share with her family on December 23rd. However, the cake, instead of bringing joy, brought tragedy, as it allegedly contained arsenic, a highly toxic substance. Two of Zeli’s sisters, Maida Berenice Flores da Silva, 58, and Neuza, along with her niece, Tatiana Denize Silva dos Anjos, 43, succumbed to the poison after consuming the cake, suffering cardiac arrest. Zeli herself remains hospitalized, fighting for her life. Tatiana’s 10-year-old son, Matheus, also consumed the cake and required hospitalization but was thankfully released a few days later.
Suspicion immediately fell upon Zeli’s daughter-in-law, Deise Moura, who is married to Zeli’s son, Diego. Deise, reportedly in her late 30s and a mother of one, was arrested at her home in Nova Santa Rita on Sunday, December 31st. Police Chief Marcus Vinicius Veloso confirmed that Deise is being held on charges of triple homicide and triple attempted murder. She was initially taken to a police station in Canoas, then transferred to Torres police station, and is currently being held in a women’s jail in the city. Authorities have been tight-lipped about the ongoing investigation, offering few details beyond the initial charges.
The sequence of events leading up to the tragedy reveals that Deise allegedly baked the cake at Zeli’s home on December 23rd, then transported it to Maida’s apartment, where the family gathered for their Christmas celebration. The cake, according to some who tasted it, had an unusual “spicy” and “peppery” flavor, a characteristic not typically associated with sweet cakes. This unusual taste, coupled with the subsequent illnesses and deaths, raised red flags for investigators. Police seized various ingredients from the home, including flour, dried fruits, and, significantly, pesticide. Arsenic, while highly toxic, is odourless and tasteless, making its detection in food challenging. The spicy and peppery notes described by those who consumed the cake could potentially indicate the presence of other substances or a reaction between the arsenic and other ingredients.
The investigation has widened beyond the immediate Christmas tragedy to encompass a previous death in the family. Some months prior, Zeli’s husband, Paulo, died from what was believed to be food poisoning. Family members reported that both Paulo and Zeli had fallen ill after eating mashed bananas grown in their garden. While Zeli recovered, Paulo tragically passed away just hours after being admitted to the hospital. Given the recent events, authorities have decided to exhume Paulo’s body to conduct further testing and determine if there is any connection between his death and the poisoned cake. The exhumation is scheduled for Thursday.
While the investigation continues, several questions remain unanswered. The motive behind the alleged poisoning is unclear, and authorities have yet to publicly comment on any potential reasons Deise might have had to harm her family. Early reports indicated that there were no known disputes within the family, but police have maintained that they are keeping an open mind as the investigation progresses. The presence of pesticide among the seized items hints at a possible source of the arsenic, but it remains to be confirmed if this was indeed the source and how it ended up in the cake.
The festive celebration, meant to be a time of joy and togetherness, turned into a nightmare for the Dos Anjos family. The Christmas cake, a symbol of celebration, became an instrument of tragedy, leaving a family shattered and a community in shock. The investigation continues as authorities work diligently to piece together the events that led to this devastating loss and bring those responsible to justice. The full results of the lab tests, including the analysis of the cake and the exhumation report of Paulo’s body, are eagerly awaited, as they are expected to shed more light on the circumstances surrounding this tragic Christmas poisoning.
