GYM STAR HORROR
Female bodybuilder Debora Michels dead at 30: Fitness influencer’s body dumped outside parent’s house & husband arrested
Police say husband admitted what happened on night she died
A popular fitness influencer was murdered before her body was dumped outside her parents' home.
Débora Michels, 30, known as Deby, was found dead on the pavement covered in a red cloth just yards from her mum and dad's home.
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Police that Débora's husband Alexander Gunsch, 50, had confessed to the killing.
They say CCTV from security cameras shows the moment when Gunsch places his wife's body on the pavement before fleeing in his car.
When he was arrested, Gunsch allegedly told police he had grabbed Débora by the neck during a heated row, lifted her up and threw her against a wardrobe, knocking her unconscious.
The pair had been married for 10-years but Débora, whose full name was Débora Michels Rodrigues da Silva, had decided to leave Gunsch before the tragedy.
Gunsch then told cops he put Débora's lifeless body in his car to take her to hospital but claimed he then discovered she was dead, panicked and took her to her parents house and dumped her outside.
Débora's body was found under a blanket on the pavement in front of their home in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil in the early hours of Friday morning.
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A women's aid advocate at the Specialised Police Station, Cleusa Spinato, said Alexander surrendered and confessed to the crime when police attended his address on Saturday, reports.
He was remanded in custody where he remains today, as a police request to extend his detention was granted on Saturday evening.
Ms Spinato added that police were treating the case as a femicide and Alexander was the main suspect.
Débora's devastated brother Alex Michels told local media: "This situation is revolting. What our family wants is justice. You cannot leave anyone unpunished."
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A close friend of Débora's, Deise Chemelo, described her as a "magnetic person".
"She lit up every place she went; she only had friends, and she only did good.
"A fighter, an entrepreneur, there is no explanation for what happened. She didn't deserve it. We don't understand."
The young woman, a bodybuilder, was popular on Instagram and had thousands of followers who tuned into her regular educational posts related to her job as a personal trainer and her active lifestyle.
Friends and family mourned the tragic loss of Débora at a funeral held on Saturday morning before she was buried in the Municipal Cemetery of Montenegro about 11 am the same day.
Police investigations are ongoing.
It comes not long after a DJ influencer was found dead with a gun in what may have been a staged suicide.
The lifeless body of Nong WanChiap, 23, was found lying naked on her bed in Bangkok, Thailand with injuries resembling gunshot wounds around her left ear.
A firearm lay on her pillow near her left hand.
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Some of the young woman's friends reportedly suspected her ex-boyfriend may have been involved in her death and alerted police.
His body was later discovered in his room.
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HOW YOU CAN GET HELP:
Women's Aid has this advice for victims and their families
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – [email protected].
Women’s Aid provides a - available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
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