Brazilian police are investigating a deadly arsenic-filled Christmas cake that killed 3 people

Authorities in Brazil Police said they opened an investigation after three women died and several others were taken to hospital after a family ate Christmas cake laced with arsenic. Local media.

The three women – who local media said were aged 43, 58 and 65 – died after eating the cake at a family reunion on December 23 in Torres, a small coastal town in southern Brazil.

The woman who baked the cake, along with a 10-year-old child who also ate the cake, remain in hospital and receiving treatment for poisoning.

Civilian police sent the cake for examination, and said laboratory tests also showed arsenic levels in blood samples taken from the three victims.

Police said they also found several expired food items during a search of the woman’s home. CBS News partner BBC reported. The police added that it was not yet clear whether the poisoning was intentional.

Tests on the cake are expected next week.

The G1 news website said police were waiting until the woman’s condition improved in hospital to question her. Meanwhile testimony was taken from 15 other people as part of the investigation.

So far, no charges have been filed and police have not said whether the case is being treated as a homicide.

Reports said the woman who made the cake was on good terms with other family members, and there was no early indication of a conflict.

The BBC, citing Brazilian media, said that police chief Marcos Vinicius Veloso said that some family members complained that the cake tasted “peppery.”

Pictures provided by police and posted online showed a partly served cake made of dried fruit with white marzipan frosting and a maraschino cherry on top. At the family gathering, only one person ate the cake and was not affected.

According to local media, the police requested the exhumation of the body of the husband of the woman who made the cake. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported that he died in September due to food poisoning, and the police considered his death natural at the time.

Very low levels of Organic and inorganic arsenic It is found in many food products, according to the National Institutes of Health. Testing is routine, as even slightly elevated levels of either form can cause symptoms such as vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, numbness and muscle spasm.

Inorganic arsenic is more toxic to humans than the natural form of mineral arsenic, and the health effects of exposure to it are more serious, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The Environmental Protection Agency has classified inorganic arsenic as a carcinogen, or a substance that causes cancer.