Erin Patterson, 50, has been found guilty of murdering three relatives of her estranged husband and attempting to murder a fourth, by serving them a meal laced with death cap mushrooms at her home in Leongatha, Australia. The case, which she claimed was accidental, has garnered significant global interest and was tried in Morwell.
Australian woman found guilty of murder after serving poisonous mushrooms to in-laws for lunch
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TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️Erin Patterson, 50, has been found guilty of murdering three relatives of her estranged husband and attempting to murder a fourth, by serving them a meal laced with death cap mushrooms at her home in Leongatha, Australia. The case, which she claimed was accidental, has garnered significant global interest and was tried in Morwell.
Trending- 1 Erin Patterson served a meal to her in-laws and their relatives in Leongatha.
- 2 Gail Patterson, Donald Patterson, and Heather Wilkinson died; Ian Wilkinson survived.
- 3 Erin Patterson was charged with murder and attempted murder.
- 4 A 10-week trial was held in Morwell.
- 5 June 30: The jury retired to reach a verdict.
- 6 Monday: The jury found Erin Patterson guilty of all four charges.
- 7 Sentencing will occur at a later date.
- Erin Patterson was found guilty of four charges (three murders, one attempted murder)
- Erin Patterson will be sentenced at a later date
- The case attracted huge global interest and media attention
- Several documentaries on the case are in production
- Jurors were granted special dispensation to avoid jury duty for 15 years
What: Erin Patterson was convicted of murdering three relatives and attempting to murder one, by serving them a meal containing poisonous death cap mushrooms.
When: Monday (conviction), June 30 (jury retired), 10-week trial, sentencing at a later date.
Where: Leongatha, Victoria, Australia (where the meal was served); Morwell, Victoria, Australia (where the trial was held).
Why: The prosecution alleged Patterson fabricated a cancer diagnosis to lure guests, poisoned their meals while serving herself an untainted portion, lied about being sick, and attempted a cover-up. Patterson claimed the deaths were accidental and her lies about cancer were due to embarrassment about planned weight loss surgery.
How: By serving a meal of individual Beef Wellingtons accompanied by mashed potato and green beans, which were later found to contain death cap mushrooms.