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Erin Patterson: New blow for mushroom killer as home seized

Erin Patterson: New blow for mushroom killer as home seized

7NEWS5 days ago
The property at the centre of a deadly mushroom lunch has been restrained by the court after Erin Patterson was found guilty of triple murder.
Victorian Supreme Court Justice Michelle Quigley granted the confiscation application over Patterson's Leongatha property on July 23 following a closed court hearing.
A suppression over the restraining order was lifted at 5pm on Wednesday.
Patterson was on July 7 found guilty of murdering her former in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, 70, and Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson, 66.
She was also found guilty of the attempted murder of Heather's husband Ian Wilkinson.
The jury found she deliberately served the four people beef Wellingtons laced with death cap mushrooms at her Leongatha home on July 29, 2023.
Patterson, 50, pleaded not guilty, claiming during her 11-week trial in Morwell that she did not intentionally poison her lunch guests.
But 12 jurors returned the four guilty verdicts on July 7 after seven days of deliberations.
On July 16, the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions made an application in the Supreme Court for the Leongatha property to be restrained under the confiscation act.
The order was granted following a closed court hearing before Justice Quigley on July 23.
A spokeswoman from the Office of Public Prosecutions confirmed the confiscation application was to prevent the property being sold or otherwise dealt with.
'This is to ensure that if any family members of Ms Patterson's victims apply for compensation or restitution, the property is available to satisfy any orders that are made by the court,' the OPP statement said.
Patterson's lawyers have been approached for comment, while her ex-husband Simon declined a request.
Patterson, who is facing the possibility of life behind bars, will return to court for a pre-sentence hearing later in 2025.
After her sentence is handed down, she will have 28 days to file an appeal.
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