Terrifying moment homeless woman is shot dead in Brazil after she asked a man if he could spare 25 cents just hours before four men living on the streets were fatally poisoned
A 31-year-old homeless woman in Rio de Janeiro was shot dead just seconds after she asked a man if he could spare 25 cents so that she could buy bread.
A surveillance camera recorded the moment Zilda Henrique dos Santos Leandro was walking in the middle of the street and attempted to get the attention of Aderbal Ramos de Castro on Saturday morning.
The man continued to walk, ignoring her, until dos Santos Leandro caught up with him and they exchanged words.
The footage shows Dos Santos Leandro, who was also known as Néia, turn away from de Castro and appear to walk away before de Castro shot her with a 39-caliber revolver.
The shooter fled as a witness rushed to the victim's side. Dos Santos Leandro was taken to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead.
De Castro was arrested and has remained in police custody ever since.
His lawyer told Brazilian outlet G1 that their client claimed he was on his way to open a restaurant that he owns and thought dos Santos Leandro was going to rob him.
He has been robbed at other times in that region and so reacted, Daniela Lopes said.
Dos Santos Leandro's sister, who refused to be identified out of fear, said the family was 'devastated.'
She added that while her sister had a home, she preferred to live in the streets.
The incident took place hours before another attack on the homeless, where four men who lived on the streets of Sao Paulo died after drinking a 'suspicious liquid'.
Police are investigating the case as a possible mass poisoning in the neighborhood known as 'Cracolandia,' or 'Crackland,' which is infamous for open drug use.
A police statement said a survivor told authorities that the seven men and one woman were offered a bottle they believed contained alcohol Saturday.
After drinking it they became sick and four of the men later died in the hospital. The four survivors are in serious condition.
Police are testing the contents of the bottle, which they described as a 'suspicious liquid,' and are searching for the people who provided the bottle.
