Australian accused in mushroom murders recounts fatal lunch

4/6/2025 16:42

An Australian woman accused of using poisonous mushrooms to murder three elderly relatives of her estranged husband gave on Wednesday her account of the fatal lunch, in a case that has gripped the public.



Erin Patterson, 50, is charged with the July 2023 murders of her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, along with the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson, Heather's husband.



The prosecution accuses her of knowingly serving the guests lethal death cap mushrooms in a Beef Wellington pastry dish at her home in Leongatha, a town of about 6,000 some 135 km (84 miles) from Melbourne.



She denies the charges, with her defence calling the deaths a "terrible accident", but faces a life sentence if found guilty.



She wept repeatedly on Wednesday as she told the court she might have accidentally included foraged mushrooms in the meal she served.