Elize, widow of Yoki's CEO, Marcos Kitano Matsunaga, is totally isolated in prison (Itapevi, outskirts of São Paulo city). Marcos was one of the grandsons of the founder of the giant Brazilian food company. He was the only heir in charge at the company.
The case is one of the biggest involving corruption in Brazil (police especially, so far; but it is to spread as case is now in court). The judge who denied the release of Elize (on 12.6) passed on the case on the following day (13.6) arguing it was not under his jurisdiction. Such judge, papers say, put Elize in prison on 04.6. No proof stood to justify that. The case was to reach the newspapers on the following day (05).
Moreover, we are before one of the biggest mistakes regarding the condemnation - only by public uproar - of a non guilty. Elize had no defendant at all till the authorship of the crimes was defined by the efforts of dubios investigations and media sensationalism.
The case is also unique in that the State is determined to push to the end Elize's role as scapegoat in order to protect all the powerful institutions that are now deeply implicated as they have helped with producing Elize's culpability. These include big newspapers, TV stations and the very Department of Homicides and Person Protection (DHPP), led by Mr. Jorge Carrasco - who had passed on the case by the time the point of 'general public convincement' was reached, and as he expected what was to follow: technical examination of the corpse (by IML) denied Mr. Carrasco's version a week later. Now such version is being referred to, in the papers, as the "version of the defendant'.
Early (May) secret investigations had military police officers (PMs) as suspects of the brutal murder of Marcos - shot in the head jointly with cut of the throat, complete dismemberment - the arms while he was still alive. Naturally, PMs were just the executers.
The public is absolutely convinced Elize did the monstrous - and unlikely for a woman - task all by herself. Only videos, edited to any experienced eye, and the allegation, repeated over and over, that she studied nursing, were enough to make up the Brazilians mind. While Elize had no defendant, Carrasco also proclaimed, on 06.6, she had 'confessed everything'.
On Friday, 15, we asked, through our twitter @mariangelapedro, the archbishop of São Paulo, Dom Odilo Scherer, to look into the case. Only a very strong political intervention, such as his, could save Elize.
The murder and the deal
Marcos disappeared after leaving the apartment building where he lived with Elize and a one-year old baby girl on Sunday 20. Carrasco's changed that to declare the last time Marcos was seen was entering that building on the evening of 19. Carrasco then built up upon the claim that Elize killed his husband in their apartment, where she would also have carried out all the dismemberment while the baby and a nanny remained on the premises. That unlikely version, we stress, is Carrasco's.
Days later, on 24, General Mills issues a press release announcing the buyout of Yoki. Marcos's father takes his place on the deal occasion.
Marcos got a divorce in order to marry Elize. First wife has a young son, only three years old. She has, obviously, a share and great deal of (vested) interests in all this. None of such matters, though, prompted Carrasco to give consistency to his investigations.
The used-to-be strong brand Yoki is being mocked upon on twitter as Marcos is dubbed Mr. Yoki and products are the focus of black humour.
To our knowledge the international media has totally ignored Marcos's murder and effects.
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