Erin Patterson has been found guilty of murdering three of her relatives and attempting to murder another with a deadly mushroom lunch.
The Victorian Supreme Court jury convicted Patterson of murdering her estranged husband’s parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt, Heather Wilkinson, per the Guardian.
She was also found guilty of attempting to murder Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, who survived after spending weeks in hospital.
The verdicts came after the 12-member jury, made up of seven men and five women, deliberated for six days following a nine-week trial in which more than 50 witnesses took the stand.
As the verdicts were read out, Patterson, 50, “did not drop her gaze from the jury” and “showed no emotion but blinked rapidly.”
No members of the Patterson or Wilkinson families attended court for the verdicts.
“Our thoughts are with the respective families at this time and we acknowledge how difficult these past two years have been for them,” Victoria Police said in a statement. “We will continue to support them in every way possible following this decision.”
Patterson was arrested and charged in November 2023, more than three months after the deadly lunch at her Leongatha home in south-eastern Victoria’s Gippsland region on 29 July 2023.
All four guests were diagnosed with amanita mushroom poisoning, with Gail and Heather dying on 4 August, Don the following day, and Ian Wilkinson eventually recovering and being discharged in September, as reported by the Independent.
The prosecution, led by Nanette Rogers SC, alleged Patterson deliberately foraged for the deadly mushrooms, dried them in a dehydrator, and used them in individual beef wellingtons while leaving her own portion untainted.
“That choice to make individual portions allowed her complete control over the ingredients in each individual parcel,” Rogers told the court.
The prosecution argued that Patterson lied about where the mushrooms came from, lied about foraging, and lied about owning a food dehydrator, and further claimed she had lured her in-laws and their relatives under the false pretence of having cancer and needing advice on how to break the news to her children.
“She knew how to tell convincing lies when it came to the cancer because she had put in the research,” Rogers said, adding: “Her lie would die with them.”
Patterson admitted during her eight days on the witness stand that she lied about having cancer, saying she did so to hide her plans for weight-loss surgery.
“I didn’t want to tell anybody, but I shouldn’t have lied to them,” she said.
She maintained that the deaths were a “terrible accident” and that she never intended to harm her guests, with her defence barrister Colin Mandy SC telling the court that Patterson had panicked and lied to police because she was overwhelmed, per BBC News.
The court heard that Patterson’s estranged husband, Simon Patterson, was also invited to the lunch but declined, saying he felt “too uncomfortable” to attend.
The prosecution did not allege a motive, while the defence emphasised Patterson’s intention to maintain good family relations despite her strained relationship with Simon.
Justice Beale told the jury that while Patterson had admitted to lying, “Before you may return a verdict of guilty, the prosecution must satisfy you that the accused is guilty of the charges in question.
Erin Patterson does not have to prove anything.” He added: “It is not enough for the prosecution to prove that the accused is probably guilty or likely to be guilty.”
During the trial, the court heard how Ian Wilkinson, a pastor from Korumburra Baptist Church, told the court that Patterson served him his beef wellington on a different coloured plate, a detail highlighted by the prosecution as part of their argument that Patterson had knowingly targeted her victims.
Reporters crowded outside the court after the verdict, with Patterson’s friend Ali Rose stating, “I’m saddened, but it is what it is,” and when asked what she thought Patterson felt as the verdicts were read, she said: “I don’t know.”
Victoria Police praised the work of the homicide squad detectives over the course of the “complex investigation,” noting: “The Patterson and Wilkinson families will not be supplying a statement via Victoria Police and have asked for privacy at this time.”
Patterson now faces a potential maximum sentence of life imprisonment, with sentencing to be set at a later date.