Camilla Jessen
Family mourns parents found dead in a motel bathtub after a night out.
A night of celebration ended in tragedy when a Brazilian couple was found dead in a motel bathtub filled with scalding water.
Parents found dead after daughter’s birthday
A Brazilian couple was found dead in a motel bathtub the day after celebrating their daughter’s fourth birthday.
The pair had spent the previous day celebrating at a food park with their daughter before going out to a nightclub that evening.
They left the child with Sagaz’s sister and checked into the Dallas Motel in São José, in southern Brazil, just after midnight on August 11.
The victims
Police identified the victims as 37-year-old Jeferson Luiz Sagaz, and his partner, Ana Carolina Silva, 41.
Family alarmed when couple didn’t return
The next morning, when the couple failed to pick up their daughter as planned, relatives contacted authorities.
Police later discovered their bodies inside the motel bathroom, submerged in a bathtub filled with scalding water.
Bathtub water reached 50°C
Investigators determined that Sagaz and Silva had passed out in a tub of water heated to around 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit).
A portable space heater had also been left running in the room, contributing to the extreme temperature.
CCTV footage and vehicle records confirmed the couple had checked into the motel together hours earlier after leaving the nightclub.
Toxicology tests reveal alcohol and cocaine
Toxicology results showed both victims had high levels of alcohol and traces of cocaine in their systems, according to the Brazilian outlet Globo G1.
Chief Medical Examiner Andressa Boer Fronza said the combination of substances and heat exposure caused “exogenous poisoning,” which led to dehydration, heatstroke, and ultimately organ failure.
“In other words, this death occurred due to multifactorial conditions,” Fronza said.
Forensic team rules out foul play
Police carried out 16 forensic tests to rule out other causes of death, including drowning, carbon monoxide poisoning, electrical malfunction, and signs of violence.
All results pointed to extreme heat as the cause of death.
“There was no indication of foul play,” authorities confirmed.
Family questions cocaine use
Relatives of Silva told investigators that she was not a habitual drug user, suggesting she may have been pressured or unknowingly consumed cocaine that night.
Police Chief Simão noted that both victims may have had low tolerance to the drug, especially when mixed with alcohol and exposure to high heat.
“It may be that their physical constitutions were not compatible with the use of a substance like that,” Simão said. “The big issue raised in the statements we took is that they did not have the habit of using cocaine.”
Remembered as devoted parents
Friends described the couple as “sociable and caring,” devoted to their young daughter.
Silva owned a nail salon, while Sagaz worked at the Trindade Military Police Academy in Florianópolis.
The pair had been together for nearly 20 years.
Child now in care of relatives
Following the tragic deaths, the couple’s 4-year-old daughter has been placed in the care of family members.
Authorities confirmed that she is safe and being supported by relatives as they come to terms with the sudden loss.
This article is made and published by Camilla Jessen, which may have used AI in the preparation
