The gruesome discovery of Geralda Lúcia Ferraz Guabiraba’s body in January 2012 near a roadside landmark in Mairiporã city sent shockwaves through the community.

The 54-year-old housewife, married to a commercial director at Grupo Estado, was found in the early hours of January 14, laid out in a crucifix-like position next to the Pedra da Macumba. This site is notorious for its association with religious offerings and whispered tales of sinister rituals.

Her eyes had been removed, her face stripped of skin and muscle, and a deep wound marred her neck. To many, it bore the hallmarks of a ritualistic sacrifice.

The Pedra da Macumba itself only added to this chilling theory. Located just off kilometre 8 of the Estrada da Santa Inês, the entrance to the nearby Trovão farm was often strewn with bottles, shattered glass, remnants of fruit, candles, flowers, animal parts, and other items typically used in Afro-Brazilian religious practices.

Local residents described the area as eerie. “We feel something different when we pass by here,” revealed Oscar José Siqueira, 53, a neighbour who was among the first to discover Geralda’s body, reports <a href=”https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/woman-found-dead-cross-like-35843051″ rel=”Follow” target=”_self”>the Mirror</a>.

On that fateful January night, witnesses reported seeing Geralda’s car parked along the road. A local shopkeeper informed police he saw a burly man behind the wheel around 1.30am, followed by another vehicle.

This disturbing detail hinted at a possible abduction.

Geralda’s personal computer was seized for investigation after it was discovered that two days prior to her death, someone had searched online for chumbinho – a potent rat poison often misused in suicides.

Initially, however, forensic analysis suggested a different cause of death. The first medical examiner ruled out suicide and animal activity, concluding Geralda had been killed with a sharp instrument.

Her neck wound and bruising on her back indicated she may have been struck while kneeling.

With her body found next to a site associated with mysticism, early theories ranged from ritual murder, revenge, or even the possibility that she had been lured there under false pretences.

The case was passed to the Departamento de Homicídios e Proteção à Pessoa (DHPP), who interviewed Geralda’s husband, son-in-law, and other family members. They also confiscated her computer and phone, and examined items from her home for additional clues.

Despite the unsettling state of the body, detectives struggled to find evidence linking anyone to her death. No enemies, no disputes, no clear motive.

Over time, alternative explanations surfaced.

Geralda’s neurologist informed investigators she had been battling severe depression, and three months before her death was already “totally propense to commit suicide”.

On the day she left home alone, she carried with her a container that police later connected to the ingestion of poison.

Toxicology tests confirmed the suspicion – her blood contained lethal levels of chumbinho.

The amount was described as more than sufficient to cause death.

That discovery reframed the most shocking details of the scene.

The missing eyes and facial damage were not deliberate mutilations, the final report concluded, but the result of scavenging by wild rats after death.

The strange positioning of her body was accidental.

The supposed signs of a ritual killing were in fact tragic coincidences of circumstance and decomposition.

The second autopsy contradicted the first examiner’s view that a sharp weapon had been used, and determined there was no evidence of a violent struggle.

After two and a half years of inquiries, the DHPP publicly ruled out homicide.

“All possibilities of finding some adversary, some person who could have done this to her, were exhaustively explored. There is no doubt it was a suicide,” said delegate Rui Antonio Karan Filho when the findings were released.

The courts accepted the conclusion, and the case was formally archived.

By then, though, the damage had been done in the court of public opinion.

The symbolism of the Pedra da Macumba, the disturbing state of Geralda’s body, and the long gap before the case was closed had already entrenched the story as one of São Paulo’s most unsettling modern mysteries.