Ana Paula Veloso and Michele Paiva da Silva are being linked to four murders in Brazil after a 65-year-old man died from being served a toxic bean stew in his own home
A law student suspected of multiple murders called the police herself in a bid to ‘manipulate the investigations’.
Ana Paula Veloso, 36, allegedly poisoned pensioner Neil Correa da Silva in Baixada Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a toxic bean stew. Detectives suspect that the victim’s daughter, Michele Paiva da Silva, was complicit in planning the murder, with text messages revealing their heartless scheme.
In all the police reports filed, the suspect appears as a complainant, witness, or even an alleged victim to manipulate the investigation and deflect suspicion from her. “She took pleasure in manipulating the investigations. She created versions of events, made up threats, and used the police themselves to support her narrative,” said an investigator.
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The alarm around her behaviour was first raised in January, when Ana Paula called the Military Police and reported that her neighbour Marcelo Fonseca, in Guarulhos, had been locked in his house for days and was unresponsive. Terrifyingly, she spoke calmly and concernedly to police but is shown to crack a smile in recorded video footage of the call.
Investigators say Marcelo was poisoned days earlier, and that the suspect continued to live in his house after the crime, under the pretext of rent
Labelled as a “psychopath” and a “serial killer”, Veloso is believed to have been paid R$4,000 (£560) to commit the crime, according to joint investigations by the Rio and Sao Paulo police. Paiva da Silva, a 43 year old law student and bus driver, was arrested on Tuesday 8 October at a university in Rio.
Police suggest that the father and daughter had a strained relationship. They claim that Veloso and Paiva da Silva, who are described as friends, were present at the house when he fell ill and was subsequently taken to hospital.
Detectives reportedly found a pesticide slightly less potent than lead at Veloso’s residence.
Both Veloso and Paiva da Silva are currently in police custody. According to Chief Inspector Halisson Ideiao Leite, Veloso has already confessed to killing 10 dogs as she tested the lethal bean stew.
Mr Leite stated: “She confesses that she killed 10 dogs with this poison, testing the method and the timing.
“She knew exactly how long, the dosage, and what would happen to the people who consumed what she offered.”
The investigation has also led to police in Sao Paulo speaking to Veloso’s twin sister Roberta with Mr Leite saying: “She also actively participated in Neil’s death providing moral and material assistance,” reported G1.
Police are also linking Neil’s death to three other poisonings in Guarulhos, which they now believe to have been carried out by Veloso and Paiva da Silva. “Ana Paula poisoned four people, including Neil, on Michelle’s orders,” claimed Mr Leite.
The crimes were carried out between January and April this year, police claim. “Their behaviour is identical: closeness, manipulation, and the use of poison as a silent weapon,” Mr Leite said.
Veloso had initially come to the attention of the police after she alleged she had been the victim of an attempted cake poisoning but detectives believe this was an attempt to frame someone else.
Mr Leite stated: “Ana Paula Veloso came to our police station because of an alleged poisoned cake inside a college. She planted this alleged poisoned cake to try to frame a third person . Through this investigation, we concluded that Ana Paula was not the victim in this case, but rather a serial killer.”
Detectives are now attempting to determine if the duo had planned additional murders. “She didn’t kill impulsively – she killed methodically,” stated civil police officer Raphael Morais Velo, a member of the investigation team.