A Florida woman, Nichole A. Maks, has been hit with additional charges after allegedly pouring soda on herself in an effort to remove forensic evidence, according to the Daytona Beach police.
Maks, who is already facing charges of tampering with evidence, resisting arrest with violence, and premeditated first-degree murder, is suspected of killing 79-year-old Michael Cerasoli on August 5.
The incident began when firefighters responded to a fire at a residence on Clark Street in Daytona Beach. Upon extinguishing the flames, they discovered Cerasoli's lifeless body in a room covered in blood. Police determined that he had suffered blunt force trauma to the head and stab wounds to the torso.
Maks, who was identified as Cerasoli's tenant, was nowhere to be found at the scene. However, two cellphones were discovered near the victim's body. One belonged to Cerasoli, while the other, which had a bloodied knife on top of it, belonged to Maks.
Less than two hours later, police spotted Maks outside a Krystal restaurant in Holly Hill. She was barefoot, had blood on her leg, and was wearing a ripped shirt. As officers approached her, Maks dropped a knife and a hammer at their feet.
When questioned about her whereabouts and place of residence, Maks initially provided evasive answers. She first pointed in a direction and claimed to live "right over there" by a nearby pawn shop.
Later, she stated that she had been living on the streets for the past four years. Maks denied knowing Cerasoli when shown his photograph but eventually admitted to knowing him and claimed to have been at their shared home earlier that day.
Daytona Beach police took Maks into custody for questioning. During the interrogation, Maks maintained that she had never entered Cerasoli's bedroom and had only been on the second floor of their apartment to "feed her spiders." When asked about the weapons she had dropped, Maks became agitated and requested a lawyer. Subsequently, police obtained a warrant to test Maks' bloodied body for DNA evidence.
In an unexpected turn of events, Maks requested a can of Diet Mountain Dew, which police provided. However, she began to procrastinate with the drink, prompting detectives to try and take it away from her. Maks resisted and poured the soda all over herself, including her body and hair, in an apparent attempt to interfere with potential evidence on her person.
Police had to forcefully restrain Maks, who allegedly resisted by pulling and kicking, before finally placing her in their cruiser. The knife found near Cerasoli's body was found to have blood matching samples taken from Maks' clothing. Additionally, her DNA was reportedly discovered on the handle of the weapon.
Maks is currently being held without bond at the Volusia County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court on September 5.
In a separate development, a recent study conducted by North Carolina State University revealed that sucralose, a common artificial sweetener found in Diet Mountain Dew and other sodas, can degrade DNA.
The study suggested that sucralose could potentially pose health risks and damage the lining of the intestines. However, it remains unclear whether dousing oneself in soda would effectively eliminate forensic evidence.
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