Mystery as grandma, mum and baby girl's bodies found in flat with four dead dogs

A woman, her mother, and her baby daughter have all been found dead inside a flat in , along with four pet who were also dead. Police received a call from the other grandmother who was struggling to reach the family and raised the alarm.

When arrived at the 13th-floor flat in the Belo Horizonte area of Brazil, they made the devastating find. Three generations were all found lying dead on a bed, with the close by. The victims have been identified as Cristina Lúcia Bastos Teixeira, 68, her daughter Daniela Teixeira Antonini, 42, and Giovanna Antonini Vasconcelos, who was just one month shy of her second birthday.

The Civil Police are now investigating the circumstances of the deaths. The accommodation block's manager told local reporters: "She [the baby's paternal grandmother] contacted me very worried, perhaps feeling that something bad had happened.

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"I said that I was arriving at the building and that I would go to the 13th floor where they lived. As soon as I arrived on the floor, I smelled a very strong odour and called the police."

The trio had not been seen since May 3, with police breaking into the apartment on May 9. Officers needed to break into the apartment as they found all doors and windows locked when they arrived.

The baby's father told police his daughter had a serious health problem, which meant there was a lack of connection between her oesophagus and the stomach. He and the child's mother were no longer in a relationship.

The Civil Police are investigating the case and said in a statement that it sent a forensic team to the apartment to collect evidence. No lines of inquiry have been ruled out so far. The victims' bodies have been sent for post mortem examinations.

No details about the breed or ages of the four dogs have been released. It is not known if their deaths are connected to their owners'.

A spokesman said: "The Civil Police are awaiting the conclusion of the expert reports to confirm the circumstances and causes of the deaths and, at the moment, no line of investigation has been ruled out."

Belo Horizonte is the third largest city in Brazil, with a population of around 2.3 million.