After three months of investigations, Australian police arrested Erin Patterson, a 49-year-old Leongatha woman, who prepared a lunch of poisonous mushrooms for her family last July, causing the deaths of two 70-year-old parents, Gail and Don. Patterson, her ex-husband, and the woman’s 66-year-old sister, Heather Wilkinson. Her sole survivor, husband Ian Wilkinson, 68, was released from an Austin hospital after seven weeks of treatment.
The disturbing lunch took place last July 29 and shocked the entire country. Since then, investigators have thoroughly examined the home where the fatal lunch took place, searching the woman’s car several times. The 49-year-old man has always denied the accusations and claimed he was preparing a beef-based dish flavored with supermarket-bought champagne corks. Instead, as the police discovered, Amanita phalloide type mushrooms were used, which is a very poisonous species that causes serious damage to the liver and can lead to death if not treated adequately and in a timely manner.
Homicide Detective Dean Thomas told the local press that the woman had already been questioned: “The arrest is one of the unfinished stages of this long and complex investigation. I cannot imagine an investigation. This is a situation not only in Victoria but throughout Australia with this level of media and created public interest.” Dean Thomas added: “This is a case where three people lost their lives. In smaller communities such as Leongatha and Korumburra, the shock of such a tragedy can last for years. Police are doing everything they can to ensure this investigation continues.” It is not affected by unnecessary speculations and misinformation. Investigations are still ongoing.”
Following the deaths of three family members a few days after the meal, Erin Patterson became the focus of investigators’ attention as the “creator” of the menu. The 49-year-old man has always denied the accusations, but forensic tests on beef scraps and the food dehydrator (later discarded by the woman) revealed the presence of poisonous fungi.
The woman has always denied acting deliberately, but the shadows cast against her increased after her ex-husband Simon Patterson said he had experienced similar incidents in the past: “There were times when I felt a bit ‘out’ and those moments coincided with the days I spent with her. Then a “I fainted at home that day. They took me to the hospital and I was in a medically induced coma for 16 days, during which I had three emergency surgeries, mainly on my small intestine. The doctors thought I was in a coma. I wouldn’t make it.” After three weeks in intensive care, the man was discharged and began the rehabilitation process in a special center. He, too, had been invited to the family’s mushroom dinner, but decided not to attend. A decision that could save your life.
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Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
