A cleaner allegedly drugged an elderly couple by spiking their juice before stabbing them to death so she could steal their possessions and pay off suspected gambling debts.
Paola Stefany Neto Cirino was arrested at a hotel in Itabira, Brazil, where she had fled with her six-year-old son, in the early hours of Thursday (2 July).
She reportedly confessed to putting four tablets into the juice of Maria Clotilde Moreira Maciel and her husband, Cláudio Atala Inácio.
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After drugging them, she allegedly stabbed Inácio more than 40 times and Maciel 17 times.
Despite being drugged, Inácio, 75, reportedly fought back.
Paola, 30, had reportedly been recommended by a relative of the couple to carry out cleaning work at their home in Belo Horizonte.
The day of the murders, Monday (29 June), was her first day working at the flat, as reported by Need To Know.
According to investigators, she had worked for the relative for years and had never shown any signs of dishonesty.
Police do not believe the relative was involved.
CCTV footage showed Paola arriving at the block of flats at 7:30am and leaving eight hours later wearing different clothes, carrying two large bags and sporting Maria’s sunglasses.
She was also caught on camera throwing a bloodstained blouse into a skip on a nearby street.
Before fleeing, Paola reportedly told family members she had “done something terribly wrong”.
When she was arrested, police recovered belongings belonging to the couple, along with 18,000 BRL (£2,587) in cash.
Investigators say she obtained the money by selling the victims’ possessions – including watches, jewellery and mobile phones – in central Belo Horizonte.
The couple’s bodies were found by their son on the afternoon of Tuesday (1 July), after he learned his father had failed to turn up for work.
When he entered the flat, he found his parents dead with stab wounds to various parts of their bodies, including the back, throat, neck, abdomen, chin and chest, as well as defensive injuries.
Police are investigating claims that Paola had accumulated gambling debts of around 40,000 BRL (£5,752), allegedly owing money to a loan shark after betting online, including on the popular game Fortune Tiger.
Maciel, 76, owned a shop in Belo Horizonte and had been a successful athlete for many years.
Inácio was a founding partner of a law firm in the city and, despite his age, still worked there every day.
The couple, described by relatives as “full of life”, had travelled extensively and had recently returned from a trip to the US.
Their lives were marked by tragedy in 2006 when their daughter, a triathlete, was killed after being struck by a vehicle.
Their only surviving child is also a lawyer and works at his father’s firm.
Paola is being investigated on suspicion of robbery-murder.
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