A recent analysis by the Forensic Expertise of the State of Ceará (Pefoce) determined that baby Helena Almeida, just 10 months old, found dead in Fortaleza on Monday, July 13, was not a victim of sexual violence. The document, released this Friday, July 17, indicates that the cause of death was asphyxiation, changing the initial understanding of the case that had been presented by the Secretariat of Public Security and Social Defense of Ceará (SSPDS).

In an official statement issued this Friday (17), the SSPDS detailed the expert findings. “Laboratory blood alcohol and drug tests were carried out, which did not find the presence of these substances in the samples collected from the child. The tests carried out by Pefoce also did not find the presence of semen and did not indicate the presence of genetic material from the two men involved in the incident in her body. The sexological examination showed that there was no sexual violence”, stated the secretariat.

Previously, suspicion of sexual violence had led to the arrest in the act of two men, who were initially charged with the crime of rape. However, with the release of the expert’s results, the main direction of the investigations now turns to the child’s death from asphyxiation, reorienting the work of the authorities.