The family of the mum who died in a hotel bathtub claim she was ‘forced’ to use drugs.
A four-year-old girl was left orphaned when Jeferson Luiz Sagaz and Ana Carolina Silva were found dead in Sao Jose, Brazil, after getting into a scalding hot bath.
They had been out celebrating their child’s birthday at a food park before going to a nightclub and checking into the Dallas Motel around midnight on the night of 11 August.
Their relatives raised the alarm when they failed to pick up their daughter the next day, and police found the military police officer and nail salon owner dead.
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Toxicology tests revealed traces of cocaine and very high blood alcohol levels in both of the parents as it was concluded they died of 'exogenous poisoning' and heatstroke.
Chief Medical Examiner Andressa Boer Fronza said: "The cause of both deaths was exogenous poisoning, favouring the process of heatstroke with intense dehydration, thermal collapse, culminating in organ failure and death."
It was determined that they had died after passing out in the bathtub where the water had reached 50C. There was also a space heater turned on high with it thought the couple were too intoxicated to get back out of the scalding hot bath.
"These circumstances, combined with the substances found on the bodies, led the Civil Police to conclude that the cause of death was sudden and not due to third-party intervention,” said Chief of Police Felipe Simao Gomes.
But Silva’s family have rejected speculation the 41-year-old was a habitual drug user and raised concerns that she had possibly been forced to take the cocaine.
She and Sagaz had been together for nearly two decades with friends and colleagues describing them as sociable but not known for drug use.
"It is with deep indignation that we, the family of Ana Carolina de Silva ... repudiate the fake news that has been spread," her family’s statement reads.
"Although reports indicate the presence of substances in her blood, we affirm with complete certainty that Ana was not a drug user."
With ‘serious concerns about possible forced ingestion or poisoning’, they are demanding a ‘rigorous, transparent and impartial investigation’.
The family wish to presever both her ‘memory and dignity’ and to: “Ensure that the truth prevails over cruel and unjest speculation.”
"We will not allow her story to be tarnished by unjust assumptions," it added.
"We will continue to seek answers, confident that justice will be served."
Police confirmed there was no history of violence in the couple’s relationship as Chief Simao added: “It may be that the physical constitution, both his and hers, were not compatible with the use of a substance like that, especially when combined with alcohol."
Jess Battison