The family of a devoted mum who died inside a bathtub with her boyfriend have demanded justice after a police investigation left them with even more questions. Here’s everything we know about the tragedy
A day filled with joy and celebration for a much-loved four-year-old turned into a living nightmare as the little girl suddenly became orphaned overnight.
Her parents, military police officer Jeferson Luiz Sagaz, 37 and Ana Carolina Silva, 41, a nail salon owner, spent the day marking their daughter’s birthday with family. They enjoyed food and drinks at a local food park in Sao Jose, Brazil.
Everything seemed picture perfect for the couple, who were together for nearly 20 years before tragedy struck. After the birthday event, Jeferson and Ana headed to a nightclub in the evening to continue partying.
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They had dropped off their child at Jeferson’s sister’s house before checking into their accomodation, the Dallas Motel, shortly after midnight. The couple were last seen alive at around 11:30pm.
When the couple failed to come and pick their little girl up from family, relatives soon began to worry. Their whole world was shattered when police found Jeferson and Ana dead in their motel room bathtub.
There were no signs of injury on either parent, but investigators found that the water temperature had reached 50C. A space heater was also cranked up high.
A toxicology report found traces of cocaine and very high blood alcohol levels for both Jeferson and Ana. Investigators, who also analysed CCTV footage and the couple’s car, say they passed out in the bath filled with scorching water.
Police have concluded their investigation after detirmining the couple’s cause of death, but Ana’s distraught family are still plauged by the unknown. Her relatives are convinced that the mum was forced into taking drugs, and are demanding justice.
As the mysterious tragedy leaves a little girl without her parents, we look at the unanswered questions around the couple and everything we know about the circumstances leading up to their death…
Couple’s cause of death
According to the civil police, the couple’s death was caused by a combination of factors such as alcohol and cocaine use, an overheated environment, and prolonged immersion in hot water, Brazillian newspaper O POVO reports.
The official medical explanation was ‘exogenous poisoning’ – the dangerous effects of substances entering the body from an external source. This, combined with heatstroke and ‘thermal collapse’, led to organ failure.
“The cause of both deaths was exogenous poisoning, favouring the process of heatstroke with intense dehydration, thermal collapse, culminating in organ failure and death,” Chief Medical Examiner Andressa Boer Fronza said.
The medical examiner’s report states that the drugs, combined with alcohol and extreme heat, increased their risk of death. A total of 16 forensic tests ruled out other possible causes including electric shock, drowning, carbon monoxide poisoning or foul play.
Investigators, who also analysed CCTV footage and the couple’s car, say they passed out in the bath filled with scorching water. Reports indicate that the couple suffered from substance poisoning, which led to heat stroke and an abnormal increase in body temperature.
The enviornment was “closed and unventilated” and the portable heater also contributed to the high temperature in the bathroom. Police have treated the case as a freak accident.
Last known movements before tragedy
The couple checked into the Dallas Motel just after midnight on August 11. They partied at a night club after dropping their daughter off to stay with Jeferson’s sister. Heartbreakingly, the little girl’s birthday was reportedly that same day.
Ana and Jeferson, who was off duty that day, were last seen alive at around 11:30pm. They never returned to collect their little girl. Her birthday celebrations earlier that day would be the last time their daughter would see her parents.
The child is understood to be under the care of her relatives following the awful tragedy.
Family fear ‘poisoning’
Ana’s family have since expressed fears that the mum may have been forced to take drugs and are demanding ‘justice’. In a passionate statement released to the media, they said unequivocally that she was “not a drug user” and that they had “concerns of possible forced ingestion or poisoning”.
“It is with deep indignation that we, the family of Ana Carolina de Silva … repudiate the fake news that has been spread,” the statement says. “Although reports indicate the presence of substances in her blood, we affirm with complete certainty that Ana was not a drug user.
“Given the inconsistencies, we raise serious concerns about possible forced ingestion or poisoning and demand a rigorous, transparent and impartial investigation.” The heartbroken family said they wish to “preserve Ana’s memory and dignity, [and to] ensure that the truth prevails over cruel and unjust speculation”.
In response to the police concluding the case, the family added: “We will not allow her story to be tarnished by unjust assumptions. We will continue to seek answers, confident that justice will be served.”
Can a hot bath really kill you?
A health expert has explained exactly what happens to your body in a very hot bath, and has warned others of the risk.
Speaking with the Mirror, Dr Anisha Patel explained: “The problem with very hot baths is that when you go into hot water, your blood vessels dilate and it lowers your blood pressure. Therefore, you’ve put increased work on your heart as well.
“For some people, that mimics what happens when you have a light workout. And actually, regular bathing is generally not bad for you as it can actually improve blood pressure.
“But if you’ve got a history of feeling faint, having a really hot bath might make you feel dizzy or collapse, especially if you’ve got a history of low blood pressure or heart problems. Your body has to work hard to cool itself.”
Highlighting how drugs and alcohol can heighten such dangers, Dr Anisha continued: “Alcohol and drugs dilate blood vessels, and they also sort of dampen down the signals in your nervous system. Therefore, these two things in combination can put more strain on your heart and drop your blood pressure further.
“And so that’s why some people can unfortunately feel quite unwell and sometimes lose consciousness as a result when you’ve got this combination. Recreational drugs like cannabis, cocaine, and MDA can actually have similar or worse effects than alcohol because they also affect the way the body regulates its temperature and heart rhythm. Then, you add in a hot bath as well, it can get harmful.
She added: “If your body goes above forty degrees, it can push your body into Hyperthermia for a prolonged state of time when your core temperature rises, and that can cause confusion, like weakness, nausea, fainting. So I think it’s the messaging in this is the combination rather than a hot bath per se.
“In terms of what’s safe, keeping your bath less than forty degrees, limiting time to up to twenty minutes, and avoiding drugs and alcohol. And obviously, staying hydrated to reduce any adverse effects.”
Meanwhile, Dr Donald Grant, GP and Senior Clinical Advisor at The Independent Pharmacy, also told us: “I strongly advise against taking hot baths if you are pregnant, as the increased core temperature can heighten the risk of birth defects, especially throughout the first trimester. It’s also not the best idea to have a hot bath after or while drinking, as both alcohol and hot baths impair thermoregulation and lower blood pressure. This can increase dehydration and put even more strain on the heart.
“To be safe, always keep water temperature around 37-39 degrees Celsius. I also recommend hydrating before and after a hot bath and standing up slowly when getting out, to avoid sudden drops in blood pressure.”
Police statement in full
In a press conference, chief inspector Felipe Simao said the couple “had a busy social life but did not have a drug habit”. “The big issue raised in the statements we took, talking to people involved in this, is that they did not have the habit of using cocaine,” he noted. Police also said there was no known history of violence.
“Regarding the bathtub, the water temperature rose above 50C in a short space of time. The room heater and ventilation system were also activated and were found to be on at a high temperature.
“These circumstances, combined with the substances found, as the doctor mentioned, led to the conclusion that the cause of death was sudden death,” the chief inspector 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,” the head investigator noted.
Jefferson and Ana Carolina had been together for almost 20 years and were described by friends as devoted parents and sociable.
Another horror bath death
The couple’s tragic death isn’t the first fatal accident involving a bathtub. Earlier this year, another mum died in eerily similar circumstances.
Gabriele Cristine Barreto de Freitas, 24, fell unconscious in a hot tub at a motel room. She was left with horrendous burns across her body and woke up screaming in agony.
Heartbreakingly, she later died with third-degree burns. The woman went into cardiac arrest and couldn’t be saved.
The mum-of-one was staying in a motel in Curitiba, in the Brazilian state of Parana, with a man she had met at a party.
