ATHENS – A 33-year-old woman charged with killing her 9-year-old daughter after a cat anaesthetic was detected in the girl’s blood was not assaulted while in detention, Greek police said.

The claim was made by relatives of Roula Pispirigou on an afternoon TV show but police said it didn’t happen, said Kathimerini, her family not clarifying what they said allegedly happened.

Pispirigou was examined by a doctor and no injuries were reported, while police said that she had made a statement that the alleged incident did not occur as her case has riveted the country and brought shock and outrage as her two other daughters also died in the previous three years.

An investigating magistrates assigned a new lawyer, Konstantinos Zardas, to represent Pispirigou after two other lawyers refused to do so, the paper said, the accused denying she killed her daughter.