A baker who killed three people after making an ‘arsenic-laced’ Christmas cake has been pictured for the first time.
Zeli Terezinha Silva dos Anjos, 61, from Torres, Southern Brazil, baked the cake for a festive meal with her family on December 23. But after eating the desert, her sisters Maida, 57, and Neuza, 65, as well as Neuza’s daughter Tatiana, 43, died.
Tatiana and Maida died on the same day while Neuza was hospitalized in a critical condition before dying the following day. Three others, including Zeli and a 10-year-old boy, fell ill and were taken to hospital.
The Mirror reports that it has since emerged Anjos’s cake was found to have traces of arsenic. The toxic metal was found in the bodies of all three of the deceased.
Zeli is believed to have eaten two slices of the cake and was the first to be taken to the hospital after which she became seriously ill. She remains in a stable condition. The 10-year-old, who is believed to be Tatiana’s son, is believed to be in a stable condition.
Only one person who was present at the family meal, who has not been named, did not eat any of the cake. Police are now planning to exhume the remains of Zeli’s husband, who died in September, due to food poisoning.
Zeli is understood to have spoken to police who have yet to determine whether the victims were intentionally poisoned. It’s believed she gave information to authorities about the time and place where the ingredients for the Bolo de Natal were purchased. Once Zeli has been discharged, she will reportedly be questioned further.
According to the Hospital Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes de Torres, Tatiana and Maida both suffered fatal cardiac arrests. Neuza reportedly died due to “shock after food poisoning.”
A statement from local police to the local network Globo said: “We even have information that there was mayonnaise there that had expired a year ago. There were expired products in the residence. A bottle was found, a medicine, which should have had capsules inside it and there were no capsules – there was a white liquid and this white liquid will also be examined.”
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