Twin sisters in Colombia have died just minutes apart after allegedly eating a homemade bar of soap, leaving investigators scrambling to establish what caused their deaths.
Linda Rosa Garcia Hortua and Laura Maria Garcia Hortua, both 33, were rushed to hospital in critical condition after relatives found them lying on their beds with dangerously low vital signs.
The sisters were taken by taxi to the San Javier Intermediate Care Unit in Medellín. However, one of them died shortly before reaching the medical facility, while the other passed away minutes later despite receiving treatment.
Police discovered a partially eaten bar of soap at their home, which has since become a key piece of evidence in the investigation.
Authorities also seized a quantity of sleeping pills from the property, although it remains unclear whether the sisters had consumed any of the medication.
Investigators are examining whether the deaths were linked to accidental poisoning or other circumstances. The exact cause has yet to be established, with forensic tests expected to determine what substances the women may have ingested.
They are also investigating the composition of the homemade soap, including whether it contained unusual ingredients or potentially harmful substances.
Police reportedly found no drugs or alcohol at the property.
Another key question is why the sisters decided to eat the soap and whether they had consumed anything else beforehand.
Investigators are particularly interested in whether sleeping medication, if taken, could have interacted with other substances and contributed to the fatal outcome.
The case remains under investigation, and authorities have yet to confirm whether the soap itself caused the sisters’ deaths.
The incident comes after a separate case in Italy in which two premature babies died from a bacterial infection linked to contaminated hospital dish soap.
The infants, each weighing less than two pounds, died hours apart at San Maurizio Hospital in August after being diagnosed with an infection caused by Serratia marcescens, a potentially deadly bacterium, particularly for vulnerable patients.
Following the incident, all dish soap used across the Bolzano hospital system was swiftly withdrawn.
