What Killed Denise Torres?

Denise Torres

Forty-five-year-old Belize City resident Denise Torres died within a matter of minutes on Saturday, spreading alarm among her family members and those who knew her.  While Torres’ death went viral on Facebook over the weekend with suspicions that she may have died from COVID-19, tonight her family is refuting that notion.  Torres’ family says that she was swabbed and tested posthumously, but that test result returned negative.  So what killed the mother of one?  Well, her family says the post-mortem is pending, but they have a strong suspicion that she was poisoned.  Julie Torres tells News Five that last week, her sister ate a plate of food from someone she knew and after a couple bites, she reported not feeling well. Since then, she was not feeling well until she collapsed over the weekend and died. Julie Torres speaks on the sudden passing of her youngest sister.

Julie Torres, Sister of the Deceased

“What people are saying that she has COVID-19 is no-no. Did she die from being obese? It’s a no-no. She got something from someone to eat and that is the Tuesday. On Wednesday morning when I got back here that is when she told me you know what J, the food that I eat – when I start eat the food mi tongue get heavy and I got an instant headache and the food start taste bitter and she said I throw it away. So, I asked her, what did you do? She said she drank some lime and headache pills but she nuh think it was anybody who would want to hurt her in any kind of way because she doesn’t bother nobody.”

Andrea Polanco

“So, does the family suspect at this time that she may have been poisoned?”

Julie Torres

Julie Torres

“Yes. Yes. Yes. But I don’t want to speculate a lot because we are waiting for the post-mortem to come out for us to give more information to the news house. That was the only food she ate that evening.”

Andrea Polanco

“Did this plate of food come from someone she knows?”

Julie Torres

“That’s right, but I won’t judge the person; only God can judge her.”

Andrea Polanco

“What were the symptoms she was showing those last days right before her death?”

Julie Torres

“Well, I was here Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. The last time I saw her was Thursday. The Friday, I wasn’t here until the Saturday when my sister called me and said J you have to come cross because Denise stool up and gone from herself. When I reached here the ambulance was already here. When the ambulance reached here her whole face was cold like an iceberg and her lip was already purple. I gave her some water to drink and we quickly took her to the hospital. She didn’t die at home. She didn’t die on the way. She took her last breath at the emergency door at the hospital and that is where she took her last breath.”

Andrea Polanco

“So, her symptoms were primarily diarrhea; feeling tired?”

Julie Torres

“Yes and that was the Saturday afternoon when she collapsed.”