Brazilian police have arrested a woman accused of poisoning six relatives with an arsenic-laced Christmas cake, resulting in three deaths. The incident occurred during a family gathering on December 23 in Torres, a small coastal town in southern Brazil.
Police chief Marcos Veloso revealed “strong evidence” linking the suspect, reportedly the daughter-in-law of the cake’s baker, to the crime. Investigators detected high arsenic levels in the victims’ blood, the remaining cake slices, and the flour used to prepare it.
Three women—aged 43, 58, and 65—died shortly after consuming the cake. The baker, a 61-year-old sister of the deceased, remains hospitalised in stable condition. Two other relatives, including a 10-year-old boy, have since been discharged.
Police are also seeking to exhume the body of the baker’s late husband, whose death in September was attributed to food poisoning but not previously investigated. Veloso noted that while the family appeared harmonious, long-standing tensions may have motivated the crime.
