How did Marcos Kitano Matsunaga Die?

Netflix’s ‘Elize: Shadows of a Woman’ presents a retelling of one of the most shocking murders in Brazil. The film unfolds from the perspective of Elize Kitano Matsunaga, who killed her husband, Marcos Matsunaga, and then disposed of his remains. The story gives us an insight into Elize’s background, including her turbulent childhood. Her time as a sex worker, meeting and falling with Marcos, and eventually murdering him paint a compelling study of human nature. In fact, the film first focuses on the buildup to the killing, then its aftermath, before reaching the moment when it actually happens. And it happens so fast that one is left with several questions. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Marcos Matsunaga Was Killed in His Home By His Wife

Born on October 1, 1970, Marcos Matsunaga was born into a wealthy family. He was the heir to Yoki Alimentos, Brazil’s leading food company, and was married around the time he crossed paths with Elize. Reportedly, they met through an escort website called MClass. They had an affair for a couple of years before he divorced his wife and married Elize in 2009. Initially, everything seemed to go well, but then Elize started to suspect that her husband was cheating on her. By that time, they already had a daughter. On the night of May 19, 2012, she killed Marco in their apartment in São Paulo. She shot him in the head and then dismembered his body in the bathroom.

She then put the parts in plastic bags, which she put inside three suitcases. She carried them about 20 miles outside of the city and scattered them in the woods of Cotia. The next day, Marco’s sudden disappearance was noted by his family and friends, who started to worry about him. Reportedly, Elize told them that her husband had left with a bag of clothes and some cash. She said that he fled with the woman with whom he had been cheating on her. In her defense, she also produced the evidence of his infidelity, which she had previously acquired with the help of a private investigator. On May 28, 2012, the cops found a decapitated head in the woods, which was identified as Marcos. Over the next few days, the rest of his remains were also found and identified.

Marcos’ Injuries Led to Conflicting Conclusions from the Analysts

Reportedly, Marcos’ post-mortem examination suggested that he died of “traumatic shock (cranial trauma) with suffocation by blood aspirated due to decapitation.” The report also revealed that the shot from the .380 pistol was point-blank, going “from left to right, downwards and from front to back.” Reportedly, the São Paulo Police Department believed that the reports’ findings pointed towards the possibility that Marcos may have been alive when he was decapitated. The findings also led them to believe that the victim may not have been standing when he was shot.

Later, in the trial, El Jundi, the assistant coroner in the exhumation analysis, testified that the bullet’s trajectory had led to the destruction of the victim’s medulla oblongata and caused “the cessation of all neurological functions and the destruction of respiratory control.” This suggested that the victim may have died instantaneously. However, another expert named Carlos Alberto de Souza Coelho, who was also present during the analysis, testified that the victim may not have died instantly. Notably, Ruggero Bernardo Felice Giudugli, who had written the main examination report, was excused from the trial.

Elize Claimed Marcos’ Murder was Not Premeditated

The cops’ suspicion turned towards Elize after an analysis of her phone records revealed that she was around the same area where Marcos’ remains had been found. Moreover, the CCTV cameras also showed her leaving her apartment building on the morning of May 20, 2012, with three suitcases, which were not with her when she returned. In the same footage, Marcos was last seen the night before in the lobby, where he went to get pizza, and in the elevator. When confronted, Elize didn’t take long to confess her guilt. According to the police, she confessed “spontaneously” and did not implicate someone else in the crime, and had acted alone.

She said that she and Marcos had been having an argument regarding his affairs, and claimed that he had slapped and threatened her. The prosecution argued that murder was premeditated, but Elize’s defense claimed that it was a crime of passion. At the trial, Elize’s defense attorney stated that she had allegedly considered divorce, but she didn’t go through with it because she feared she might lose the custody of her daughter to her husband. While appearing in the Netflix documentary, ‘Elize Matsunaga: One Upon a Crime,’ she said, “I still don’t know what kind of emotion made me pull that trigger.”

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