SYDNEY – Australia’s convicted mushroom killer attempted to poison her estranged husband on three separate occasions before serving the fatal meal that claimed three lives, a court heard yesterday after suppression orders were lifted.
Erin Patterson, 50, was found guilty in July of murdering her husband’s parents and elderly aunt by lacing their beef Wellington lunch with lethal death cap mushrooms in 2023. However, a series of potentially damaging allegations about her behaviour leading up to the murders had been withheld from the jury to ensure a fair trial.
Supreme Court Justice Christopher Beale yesterday rejected an application to keep these allegations secret, revealing the full extent of Patterson’s alleged poisoning campaign.
Pattern of alleged poisoning
Police alleged that Patterson had attempted to kill her estranged husband Simon on three occasions between 2021 and 2022, serving him poisoned dishes including pasta bolognaise, chicken curry, and a vegetable wrap.
In testimony suppressed until now, Simon described how Patterson had asked him to taste-test a batch of curries she had prepared.
“I remember Erin saying that the purpose of the taste test was so she could, I suppose, customise future curry production for our respective tastes,” he told a pre-trial hearing in October last year.
The most serious incident occurred during a camping trip in 2022, when Simon fell gravely ill after consuming a mild chicken korma prepared by Patterson.
“At first I felt hot, especially in my head, and that led to feeling nauseous and then that led to me quite suddenly needing to vomit,” he recounted.
Simon subsequently fell into a coma and required life-saving surgery to remove a section of his bowel.
Growing suspicions
Dr Christopher Ford told the court that Simon had begun to suspect his wife might be deliberately poisoning him. The husband became particularly apprehensive when Patterson offered him a batch of homemade biscuits.
“Simon was apprehensive about eating the biscuits, as he felt they may be poisoned,” Dr Ford testified. “He reported to me that whilst they were away, Erin called several times and enquired about whether he had eaten any of the biscuits.”
When Simon’s parents subsequently fell gravely ill after dining at Patterson’s house, he confided his fears to family members.
Cousin Ruth Dubois told the pre-trial hearing: “He wanted to tell us that he had suspected his own illnesses had been a deliberate act. He had stopped eating food that Erin had prepared, because he suspected that she might have been messing with it. And that he was really sorry that he hadn’t told our family.”
The fatal meal
The allegations relate to events preceding the intimate meal Patterson hosted in July 2023, which began with good-natured banter and earnest prayer but concluded with three guests dead.
A 12-person jury found Patterson guilty of murdering Simon’s parents, Don and Gail Patterson, as well as his aunt Heather Wilkinson. She was also convicted of attempting to murder Heather’s husband Ian, a well-known pastor at the local Baptist church.
Simon had been invited to the fatal lunch but withdrew because he felt “uncomfortable”. At the time, Patterson’s relationship with her estranged husband was deteriorating, with the couple engaged in disputes over child support contributions.
International attention
The trial attracted significant international attention, drawing podcasters, film crews, and true crime enthusiasts to the rural Victorian town of Morwell, previously better known for its prize-winning roses than criminal proceedings.
Publications from New York to New Delhi followed every development in what has become known simply as the “mushroom murders”.
Throughout the trial, which lasted more than two months, Patterson maintained that the beef-and-pastry dish had been accidentally poisoned with death cap mushrooms, described as the world’s most lethal fungus.
Death cap mushrooms are easily mistaken for edible varieties and reportedly possess a sweet taste that belies their potent toxicity.
Prosecutors withdrew the charges relating to the alleged attempts on Simon’s life before the trial commenced, with strict restrictions preventing media from revealing any details until yesterday’s ruling.
Sentencing pending
Patterson is scheduled to return to court on 25th August for sentencing hearings that will determine the duration of her imprisonment.
Her legal team will have 28 days following sentencing to appeal both her criminal convictions and her sentence.
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