Homemade Christmas cake kills three women in Brazil

A shocking incident in Torres, Brazil, claimed lives of three family members who ate a homemade cake, baked by their sister for Christmas celebration. 61-year-old Zeli Terezinha Silva dos Anjos, who baked the cake, is now held under custody by police for investigations.  

According to reports, the 61-year-old baked a cake as part of family gathering for Christmas. Investigations revealed that the cake had traces of Arsenic, which was also found in one of the dead’s blood streams and is estimated as the cause of death and illness.  

The highly toxic substance was also found in blood test reports of other family members as well, who are currently being treated in hospital. The police have also sent the cake for testing and stated that they found many expired food items during a search operation carried out at the woman’s house. They also recovered a bottle with white medicine, that was expired as well, however more research into this is yet to be made.   

According to the information shared by the authorities, the family members experienced a strange taste in cake, and then started experiencing symptoms including vomiting, nausea and diarrhea. They were then transported to a nearby hospital, where two of the women died on the same day, however the third woman died the next day. 

Brazil Homemade Christmas Cake mystery: Mistake or Planned Murder

This is to be noted that the husband of the cake baker woman, also died in September due to food poisoning, but the cause of his death was stated as natural at that time. The police are now actively investigating to find out if the presence of arsenic in the cake was a mistake or planned murder.   

What is arsenic and why is it deadly? 

Arsenic is a metallic element which is naturally found in the earth’s crust. The element is considered as highly toxic and carcinogenic, especially in its inorganic form and is known to cause cancer in humans.  

The presence of Arsenic in high amounts in the blood stream can lead to several issues, as it makes the blood vessels less permeable, and causes difficulty in breathing. It could significantly damage, lungs, hearts, kidneys and liver causing severe health issues or even death.