Australian woman Erin Patterson was convicted Monday of murdering her estranged husband’s family by poisoning them with death cap mushrooms.
Patterson, 50, faces up to life in prison for the deaths of Don and Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson following a meal at her home in Leongatha in July 2023.
The case captivated Australia, with several podcasts chronicling the two-month trial and reporters descending on the small town of Morwell, where proceedings were held. Many news outlets ran live blogs of the lengthy trial.
Patterson claimed the deaths of her in-laws were an innocent accident. She said she accidentally included foraged mushrooms in their meals of beef Wellington instead of using store-bought fungi.
But prosecutors said Patterson secretly despised her husband’s family and concocted the devious plot to kill them, then lied about numerous parts of it. The jury eventually agreed.
Patterson also invited her estranged husband, Simon, to the July 29, 2023, lunch, but he backed out a day in advance. However, his parents, Don and Gail, along with Gail’s sister, Heather, and her husband, Ian Wilkinson, all attended.
After the meal, the Pattersons and the Wilkinsons were all rushed to a local hospital. Erin Patterson, on the other hand, was not ill. She later claimed this was because she vomited shortly after the meal due to an eating disorder.
MARTIN KEEP/AFP via Getty Images
The home of Erin Patterson is seen in Leongatha, Australia on July 1. (Photo by MARTIN KEEP/AFP via Getty Images)
Death cap mushrooms earned their name because of their amanita toxins, which cause organ failure within days of consumption. Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, died in the hospital, as did 66-year-old Heather Wilkinson. Ian Wilkinson survived after weeks of treatment.
Investigators said Erin Patterson looked up where to find death cap mushrooms near her home, traveled to the areas and purchased a food dehydrator to prepare the fungi. After the killings, she disposed of the food dehydrator and lied about ever owning one, according to prosecutors.
Patterson claimed she tangled herself in a web of lies because she was panicking about being blamed for her guests’ deaths.
With News Wire Services
