Tatiana Denize Silva dos Anjos, 43, and Maida Berenice Flores da Silva, 58, each died from cardiac arrest on Monday (December 23), after eating a homemade Bolo de Natal – a Brazilian Christmas cake.
Another relative, Neuza Denize Silva dos Anjos, 65, was also reported dead on Christmas Eve, after consuming the cake.
The hospital noted that her cause of death was ‘shock after poisoning’, however police are yet to confirm this notion.
But this year, it appears to have killed three people.
A police handout revealed the cake suspected to be behind the poisoning (Civil Police)
Zeli Terezinha Silva dos Anjos, 61, prepared the cake. She is currently in hospital, alongside her great-nephew, who is 10 years old, and traces of arsenic were found in their blood.
Zeli’s late husband died of food poisoning in September. His death was considered to be the result of natural causes at the time, but now police are now requesting that his body is exhumed.
Speaking to Globo, a police spokesperson said: “One of the people in the hospital was the one who made the cake, and there are several expired products in her house.
“Apparently, the flour she used was also expired. There is a possibility that she suffered food poisoning, due to the ingestion of expired food, and we also cannot rule out the possibility that some type of poisoning may have occurred.”
After searching Zeli’s house, officials found that several food products from her home were expired, including a medicine bottle that contained a strange white liquid.
The cemetery where the women who died are buried (Carolina Aguaidas/RBS TV)
A police spokesperson said: “We even have information that there was mayonnaise there that had expired a year ago.
“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.”
The baker actually ate two slices of her own cake, and was the first to end up in hospital.
Police added: “We have not yet determined whether the victims were poisoned.”
The officer leading the case, also added that there was no sign of any kind of family dispute before the gathering, that may have been a motive.
The baker remains in a stable condition in hospital.
