The Rio Grande do Sul Civil Police (PCRS) is investigating the possibility that Deise Moura dos Anjos, arrested for poisoning a cake that killed three family members in Torres (RS), had other victims. The revelation came during a press conference held this Monday (6), in which authorities detailed the investigation, named “Operation Acqua Toffana”.
The suspicion that the list of people poisoned by Deise may be longer arose after the confirmation of the death of his father-in-law, Paulo Luiz dos Anjos, from arsenic poisoning.
Paulo Luiz died in September 2024, three months before the cake incident, and at first, his death was attributed to food poisoning. However, after exhuming the body, experts found a high concentration of arsenic, .
During the press conference, delegate Marcos Veloso stated that all deaths and cases of food poisoning in Deise’s community will be investigated. Investigations revealed that Deise researched, purchased and received arsenic before her father-in-law’s death and the cake incident.
The Civil Police continues to investigate the case and seek new evidence that may confirm the extent of Deise’s crimes.
Deise has been in pre-trial detention since January 5th, accused of triple double homicide and triple attempted murder. She is accused of adding arsenic to the flour used to make a cake that was served during a family gathering on Christmas Eve.
The police believe that Zeli was Deise’s main target because her mother-in-law was the only figure present in all cases in which the suspect took poison for the family’s consumption.
According to the police, Deise tried to cover his tracks, erasing research and manipulating the family to divert attention from the investigation. The evidence was found on the suspect’s cell phone, after technical work by PCRS.
