The 2026 Brazilian crime drama film streaming on Netflix, Elize: Shadows of a Woman recounts a true case that shook the country back in 2012, when a woman was charged with killing and dismembering her husband in the most gruesome manner. The case had also been adapted for a Netflix docuseries, titled Eliza Matsunaga: Once Upon a Crime, back in 2021, which dove deep into the many facets of the crime and the possible motives behind it. Here’s a brief refresher of the real case that has inspired this new crime drama, mostly based on information presented in the docuseries as well as found on the internet.
Who is Elize Matsunaga, and what was she accused of?
Hailing from the small town of Chopinzinho, in the Brazilian state of Parana, Elize Matusnaga grew up in a modest family struggling to make ends meet, until her father abandoned her family, and her mother left town as well. A three-year-old Elize was left in the care of her grandparents, before her mother moved back to Chopinzinho a few years later, and took her daughter back to live with her. The woman’s new husband lived in the house as well, and within just a few years, Elize started feeling uncomfortable with her stepfather being around. Both she and her stepsister were targeted by the vile man, as he assaulted them almost on a regular basis, and threatened them to keep the matter a secret. This drove Elize to flee her hometown, but she had to eventually return home after realizing, in a few days’ time, that the world outside was equally evil and cruel to a teenage girl like her, if not worse.
Elize later claimed that this was the very time that she resolved to leave Chopinzinho at all costs, and when her first plan, of pursuing higher education and moving to the cities failed because of a lack of funds, she chose whatever path she could find. As a young woman, she started working as an escort, and put up a profile to advertise herself on an escort service website. A few years later, she met a man named Marcos Joao Matsunaga via this website, as he hired her for her services and thoroughly enjoyed her company. Marcos kept hiring Elize and made his intentions about wanting to date her very clear, which led to the two hanging out without any transactional relationship. Within some time of them dating, Marcos proposed to Elize, and she happily agreed, meaning that the couple were finally married, having kept the manner in which they had met a secret from their world and their families.
In May of 2012, Marcos Matsunaga disappeared mysteriously, after leaving home for a couple of days to attend a few business meetings, and as Elize reported him missing, the matter made headlines immediately. The Matsunaga family had founded and owned the Yoki food company, a popular brand based out of Sao Paolo, and Marcos was supposed to be the next head of the company after his father eventually stepped down. Furthermore, the family were in the middle of some business talks with an American company that wanted to acquire Yoki, which made Marcos’ sudden disappearance all the more sensational. However, dismembered parts of his body were eventually found over the next few weeks at different parts of the forested countryside around Sao Paolo, much to the shock of his family and even his wife.
With the case of disappearance and possible kidnapping having now suddenly turned into one of murder, the police began a thorough investigation into the case and found some strange but significant details. Since Marcos had supposedly withdrawn himself from most of his friend group and was also not very close to his family, Elize happened to be the one closest to him. Her cell phone location details were checked by the police, and it was revealed that she had been at the exact spot where dismembered body parts of her husband had been found, that too around the same time that a witness had seen a vehicle suspiciously drive up to the location to dump some plastic bags. Footage from the security cameras at the couple’s apartment in Sao Paolo were checked next, and it was evident that Marcos had never really left home on the day that he supposedly went missing. He was last seen taking the elevator down to collect some pizzas he had ordered, and then moving back up to his apartment. The following day, the same CCTV in the elevator recorded Elize leaving the apartment carrying three big trolley bags, which she incidentally did not have with her when she returned a few hours later. It was evident to the police that the woman was surely the one behind her husband’s murder, and Elize Matsunaga was picked up as the prime suspect in the case.
Why did Elize confess to the crime?
Elize Matsunaga did not take very long to come out with the whole truth, as she confessed to having killed her husband within a day or two. But she had a very specific reason for having confessed to the crime, and it was the same reason why she had not ended her dysfunctional marriage a few years ago. She told the police that although she and Marcos seemed like a happy couple on the outside, things had not been going well in their private lives for a few years. The happy matrimonial bond lasted just a couple of years, as Marcos started growing distant from his wife, and he clearly stopped caring about her. He then also went on to cheat on Elize with multiple women, which she figured out quite easily. But around the same time, the couple had also started trying for a baby, and just when the two had decided to end their marriage once and for all, Elize found out that she was pregnant with Marcos’ child. This development made both of them change their minds and give their relationship another chance, as neither of them wanted to miss out on the opportunity of becoming parents.
Thus, the couple made the horrible mistake of getting back together, with Marcos apologizing for his adultery and promising that he would never repeat it, and Elize forgiving him as well. Elize gave birth to a baby girl, but the dysfunctional nature of the family could hardly be changed. Within a few years, Marcos started seeing other women once again, which ultimately led to Elize shooting him dead in their apartment. While Elize now claimed that she was confessing to the crime out of a sense of guilt and remorse, it was evident that all she cared about was the custody of her daughter, or at least getting to see her. She directly spoke of how she wanted to tell her daughter why she had killed her father, and to make her understand that she never really had a choice. Confessing to the crime also meant that she could plead for a shorter sentence, and ensure that she would get to be with her daughter at the earliest.
What was the most possible motive behind the murder?
Marcos Matsunaga had indeed gone back to his old habits even after the birth of his daughter and having made promises to his wife. Around May of 2012, Marcos had been going around with a woman named Karina Abreu, who happened to be an escort he had found from the same website he had once found Elize on. In fact, he had offered money to Karina to take down her profile from the escort service website, so that she would not be with anyone else, just like he had once done to Elize. He had also made promises to marry her, and had given her the same car he had once given to Elize. Back when Marcos had met and courted Elize, he was already married and had a child as well, and yet he had made Elize his mistress before eventually marrying her.
Suspicious about her husband’s acts, Elize had hired a private investigator in 2012, to tail Marcos around and gather evidence against him. This was how she had learnt about his affair with Karina, realizing that he had a mistress whom he planned on marrying, essentially seeking to replace her. As Marcos returned home on 10th May, the couple had a fight during which Elize confronted him about his infidelity. There are two differing opinions about what happened next, with Elize’s claim being that Marcos got abusive and violent against her. He called her names and insulted her family, while also threateningly walking towards her as if to hurt her physically. He had already slapped her once, according to her claim, and so Elize ran to the next room and grabbed a handgun, out of the numerous firearms the couple had in their apartment. Out of fear, panic and anger, Elize supposedly shot her husband in the heated seconds that followed, and he died on the spot. Even more frightened by what she had done, and how the police would come and arrest her, essentially separating her from her daughter, Elize came up with the plan of chopping up the body and dumping it the next day, to hide the crime and make it look like Marcos had simply disappeared.
But according to the prosecutors, this was not quite what had happened, judging by the angle at which the bullet had entered Marcos’ body. The bullet had hit Marcos’ head downwards, as if the gun was fired from way above his height, and it had also left marks on the skin that suggested that he had been shot from just a few inches away. Elize’s claim, that she had shot him from a few feet away and while both of them were standing upright, did not seem to fit the forensic details. According to the theory proposed by the prosecutors, Elize had not killed her husband in a fit of rage, but had premeditated it. Therefore, she waited for him to return from downstairs after picking up the pizza, and then greeted him with the gun in her hand. A shocked Marcos immediately ducked before Elize executed him from close range, just like she had planned for days. In order to prove the angle of premeditation, the prosecutors also floated the possibility of Elize having had an accomplice, a possible lover or some hired help. They went ahead to find passages or routes that could have been taken by any such person to escape the apartment building unnoticed. But ultimately, no concrete proof of the involvement of a third person could be established at the crime scene.
What happened in the court trial?
With Elize herself having admitted to having killed and dismembered her husband, the main matter at the court trial that followed was whether she had committed the crime in a heated moment or if she had meticulously planned it out before. The case also divided society into two halves, as some considered Elize to be a victim of a vile and abusive man, who had only lashed out after she felt extremely threatened. Nobody denied that Elize had made a grave mistake, but they supported her claim that she did not have any intention of taking her husband’s life from before. Others argued that Elize simply wanted the wealth of her husband’s family even though she had fallen out of love (or was never in love) with him, which was suggested by her demands that she be considered a part of the Matsunaga family even after Marcus’ death. On one hand, it was clear as daylight that Elize was being subjected to sexist perspectives and judgments by many, including many figures of authority. But on the other hand, even her supporters could not defend her decision to take her husband’s life, since there were no signs of him having posed a serious threat to her life in the first place. Ultimately, the result in the court case was equally mixed, for the jury found her to have committed the crime in a moment of passion, and not in a premeditated manner. But the judge sentenced Elize Matsunaga to 20 years in prison for the murder of Marcus Matsunaga, and the destruction and concealment of the corpse.
Where is Elize Matsunaga now?
Elize’s sentence was eventually reduced to 16 years in 2019, and she was also allowed a fixed number of leaves from prison in a year. While many protested against the court’s decision to grant her these leaves, the decision was upheld, considering it is a right granted to any prisoner in Brazil because of good behavior while incarcerated, and also for fulfilling a few requirements stated by the law. But Elize’s biggest dream, to be reunited with her daughter, was not fulfilled, as the court did not grant her requests to even see her daughter. At present, the Matsunaga family, meaning Marcos’ parents, have full custody of their granddaughter, and they want to fiercely protect her from Elize. Meanwhile, Elize Matsunaga has been reported to be living in house arrest, after her prison sentence was slightly lightened owing to her cooperation with the authorities and her good behavior.