The Brazilian woman who allegedly killed three of her relatives by poisoning Christmas cake was found dead in her jail cell. 42-year-old Deise Moura dos Anjos hanged herself in her women's prison cell, and police believe it to be due to suicide.
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Deise has been imprisoned since January 6 after a holiday party went terribly wrong. During a family gathering on December 23, Deise's mother-in-law Zeli dos Anjos baked a Brazilian Christmas cake. After several relatives ate pieces of the cake, it made everyone sick and killed three.
The local police confirmed Deise's death in a statement today. They explained that they found Deise alone in her cell during the roll call this morning and without vital signs.
Woman Who Allegedly Poisoned Family With Cake Dead In Cell
Although Zeli survived after visiting the hospital, others weren't so lucky. Her sisters Maida Bernice Flores da Silva, aged 58, and Neuza Denize Silva Dos Anjos, aged 65, both passed away. On top of that, Neuza's 43-year-old daughter Tatiana Silvia Dos Santos died just hours after eating the cake.
Investigators discovered that someone laced the cake's flour with arsenic. Even a 10-year-old boy suffered from eating the poisoned cake, but he fortunately survived and recovered in the hospital.
Despite Deise pleading her innocence, the cops arrested Zeli's daughter-in-law on January 5. "The woman was arrested for triple homicide and a triple attempted homicide," said Marcus Vinicius Veloso, Torres police chief. He then explained at the time that they couldn't give details but she was in a women's jail.
Sources told the Daily Mail that there were issues between Deise and her family. "Diego and Deise kept themselves apart from the rest of the family the last few months," the source said. "They didn't really participate much. There was tension."
Police have also looked into the possibility that Deise poisoned her father-in-law Paulo Luis dos Anjos in September. He died last fall after eating contaminated bananas. Since then, they managed to prove with forensic tests that Paulo had no traces of arsenic in his body.
Now the cops are making a separate investigation into Deise's alleged suicide. Deise's lawyer claimed that there wasn't enough evidence after her arrest to conclude it was her. "There are still questions to be answered," Cassyus Pontes said. "What is the causal link between the poison and Deise? There is no explanation of how the flour ended up in Zeli's house, or where or how it was acquired."
