Suspected poison mushroom killer’s daughter ate leftovers of fatal meal – National
The latest development in the high-profile Australian court case of Erin Patterson, who has been charged with the murders of her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson and her ex-husband’s aunt Heather Wilkinson, and the attempted murder of her ex-husband’s uncle Ian Wilkinson, features a video of her daughter giving evidence to police.
On the eighth day of the murder trial, the video, recorded on Aug. 16, 2023, shows her daughter talking to police about the meal her mother made on July 29 of that same year.
Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty and her legal team says she “panicked” after unintentionally serving poison to her family members in a “terrible accident.”
Her daughter, who has not been named, told police she ate leftovers of the deadly mushroom meal of beef Wellington, mashed potatoes and green beans with her mother and brother the day after her mother served it to her former in-laws and the Wilkinsons.
Patterson’s daughter said her mother said she was sick on the morning of July 30, the day after the lunch.
Later that night, Patterson served her children and herself “leftovers” from the meal, including mashed potatoes, green beans and steak — but no mushrooms.
When the officer asked Patterson’s daughter to tell him everything she could remember about the lunch her mother hosted, she said, “I wasn’t there so I don’t know.”
She told the officer that her mother said “she wanted to have a lunch with my grandparents and Heather and Ian,” and that they were going to talk about “adult stuff,” according to The Guardian.
On the sixth day of trial, Ian Wilkinson told the courtroom on May 6 that Patterson told her guests she had cancer. “She said she was very concerned because she believed it was very serious, life-threatening,” he said. “She was anxious about telling the kids. She was asking our advice about that. ‘Should I tell the kids or not tell the kids about this threat to my life?’”
The court also heard from Cindy Munro, a nurse on duty at Leongatha hospital on July 31, 2023, who treated the Pattersons and Wilkinsons after they became very sick, experiencing vomiting and diarrhea the same evening as the lunch.
Munro said that Patterson “didn’t look unwell” in comparison to two of her lunch guests. She told the court that Patterson was angry and emotional and kept repeating, “I don’t want any of this” in regards to hospital treatment.
The nurse said it was only her observation that Patterson did not appear as sick as the Wilkinsons did, who were transferred to a larger hospital in Melbourne.
“She didn’t look unwell like Heather and Ian,” Munro said. “Ian looked so unwell he could barely lift his head. She [Patterson] didn’t look unwell to me.”
Munro also told the court she learned that Patterson’s children had eaten the leftovers of the deadly meal, but the mushrooms had been scraped off their portions.
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She said she told Patterson there was still a risk that the death cap mushroom toxin could have “seeped through the meat” and advised that her children seek medical care immediately.
“She didn’t want to cause any hassle, she didn’t want to take them out of school,” Munro said of Patterson’s response. “And that’s when she became quite teary and quite worried, and … said ‘I don’t want the children to be involved in this.’”
Throughout the trial, the jury has heard details about the lunch and there is no dispute that the meal of beef Wellington, mashed potatoes and green beans contained death cap mushrooms, which are highly lethal when ingested, and caused the guests serious illnesses.
The judge told the jury the main issue in the case is whether Patterson planned to kill or cause very serious injury with the meal she prepared.
Wilkinson previously told the courtroom that Patterson had plated “all of the food” and appeared “reluctant” for her lunch guests to go into her pantry, according to the BBC.
Heather Wilkinson (left) and Ian Wilkinson (right) attended a lunch with a relative that led to Heather’s death and left Ian fighting for his life. Police believe they were poisoned with death cap mushrooms.
The Salvation Army Australia – Museum/Facebook
“Each person had an individual serve, it was very much like a pastry,” Wilkinson said. “It was a pastry case and when we cut into it, there was steak and mushrooms.”
He said they all ate from four grey plates and Patterson ate from an “orangey tan” plate.
“Erin picked up the odd plate and carried it to the table. She took it to her place at the table,” he told the court.
Wilkinson also said his wife told him the next day that she “noticed the difference in colours” of the plates.
He said he and his wife “ate the entire meal,” while Don ate his meal and half of the beef Wellington that Gail did not finish.
“There was talk about husbands helping their wives out,” he said.
Patterson’s ex-husband, Simon Patterson, declined the lunch invite. Last week, Justice Christopher Beale told jurors that prosecutors had dropped separate charges against Patterson alleging she had also attempted to murder her estranged husband with the poisonous mushrooms, also known as death cap mushrooms.
Death cap mushrooms are present in many of B.C.’s forests but may also be found in city environments associated with many species of imported trees. According to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control, the mushrooms have been spotted on Vancouver Island and in the Lower Mainland.
Death cap mushrooms look similar to common puffball mushrooms but should never be eaten. If you suspect you may have consumed a death cap mushroom, you should seek emergency medical care immediately.
Symptoms of being poisoned by a death cap mushroom include low blood pressure, nausea and vomiting.
Patterson’s trial is expected to last six weeks. If she’s found guilty, she faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment for the murder charges and a maximum of 25 years behind bars for attempted murder.
— With files from Global News’ Michelle Butterfield
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
