Brazilian gospel singer and former congresswoman Flordelis Souza, a mother of 55 children, has been convicted of orchestrating the murder of her husband Anderson do Carmo in 2019, following multiple failed poisoning attempts. The 61-year-old was sentenced to 50 years and 28 days in prison for the killing and the poisoning attempts.
Rise to Fame and Family Life
Flordelis began performing in churches in the early 1990s in Jacarezinho, a district of Rio de Janeiro. In 1993, as a mother of three, she met Anderson do Carmo, who was 16 years her junior and was then dating her daughter, Simone.
By 1998, the couple had split, and Flordelis married the then-21-year-old Anderson. Together, they founded their own church, the Ministry of Flordelis, and became known for sheltering vulnerable children. Their family grew to include biological and adopted children, totalling 55.
Poisoning and Murder Plot
Flordelis's fame expanded over time, and she became responsible for nine churches, produced chart-topping gospel records, and secured a parliamentary seat in 2018 as the highest-polling candidate in the state of Rio. According to investigators, she wanted her husband gone because he maintained strict control over the family's financial affairs.
She began poisoning him from mid-2018, attempting to kill him on at least six separate occasions by slipping arsenic and cyanide into his meals and beverages. Each time, he was admitted to hospital but survived. She then hired a hitman to shoot him, but Anderson switched vehicles and unknowingly threw the gunman off track.
Murder and Investigation
In June 2019, Anderson, then 42, was returning home with his wife following a night out when he was ambushed and shot dead at dawn in the property's garage. The coroner's report showed his body sustained more than 30 bullet wounds, with a substantial concentration of bullets aimed at his pelvic and groin area. Prosecutors stated he "suffered terribly" before his death.
Flordelis tearfully reported her husband's death hours afterwards, claiming he had been murdered during a robbery, but police rejected the account. Days later, her eldest biological son, Flavio, was arrested at his stepfather's wake on an unrelated domestic violence warrant, and his adopted brother, Lucas, was arrested the same day for purchasing the pistol used in the killing, which police had discovered in Flavio's bedroom.
Trial and Sentencing
Two days afterwards, the oldest child admitted to the murder. In August 2020, following further investigation, Flordelis was accused of orchestrating the murder, alongside seven of her children, a granddaughter and two individuals from outside the family. Her solicitor maintained she was innocent and described the investigation's conclusion as a "great mistake", while the lead detective stated this was "not a family but a criminal organisation."
Flavio was handed 33 years in prison for firing the fatal shot, while Lucas received seven years, reduced due to his cooperation with authorities. In 2022, the orchestrator faced trial, with her legal team contending she had no knowledge of the crime, which they claimed was executed by family members seeking to shield her from purported physical and sexual mistreatment by her husband. The judge dismissed that defence, determining she was the architect behind a murder designed to appear as a burglary gone wrong.
Her daughter and Anderson's ex-girlfriend, Simone Rodrigues, received 31 years, four months and 20 days for her role in the initial attempted poisonings. Two other offspring and a granddaughter were cleared. Flordelis has continued to protest her innocence, telling The Guardian following the sentencing: "They say it was about power and money. What power? I'm the congresswoman. I'm the gospel singer with thousands of followers... So what power did I seek to steal from my husband? And what money? I was the one who lost the most here - it was me!".
