After a harrowing nine-week trial in Morwell, Australia, Erin Patterson has been found guilty of murdering three family members and attempting to kill a fourth by serving them a fatal mushroom-laced meal. The case, which has gripped both Australia and the wider world, centred on a family lunch on 29 July 2023 that turned deadly.
Five people sat down at Patterson’s rural home for lunch, but within days, three Gail and Don Patterson and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson had died. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, survived after weeks in a coma. Patterson, who claimed the incident was a tragic accident, served beef Wellington with a mushroom paste, telling the court she may have mistakenly used foraged death cap mushrooms.
Prosecutors argued it was no accident. The court heard Patterson had lied about having cancer to lure her guests and later attempted to destroy evidence, including discarding a food dehydrator that tested positive for poisonous mushrooms. Forensic evidence also revealed she had viewed online maps tracking death cap mushroom sightings and owned a now-missing phone used around the time of the meal.
One key detail that raised suspicion was Patterson serving herself on a separate orange plate, while her guests dined from identical grey ones. She claimed her milder symptoms were due to vomiting the meal, which she attributed to bulimia a revelation used by the defence to explain her lack of poisoning.
Though no clear motive was presented, messages showed she had a strained relationship with her estranged husband and his parents. Patterson’s defence argued she acted irrationally out of fear and embarrassment, not malice, and criticised the prosecution’s reliance on circumstantial evidence.
However, the jury was not convinced. After a week of deliberation, they returned guilty verdicts for all charges.
Patterson now faces the possibility of life in prison. Sentencing will take place at a later date, bringing to a close a chilling case of deception, death, and a meal that changed lives forever.
