Erin Patterson found guilty in ‘Mushroom Murders' case: Timeline of what transpired after a fateful lunch killed 3 in 2023
Erin Patterson found guilty in 'Mushroom Murders' case: A complete timeline
On July 29, 2023, Erin Patterson hosted a lunch for some of her relatives. Her guests were her in-laws Don and Gail. They were joined by Ian and Heather, her estranged husband Simon's uncle and aunt. Simon, too, was invited to the lunch but declined the invitation on July 28. During lunch, Erin served Beef Wellington to her guests.
The very next day, all four of them were admitted to hospital after experiencing vomiting and suffering from diarrhea . Gail and Heather died a few days later on August 4. Don died the next day despite receiving a liver transplant.
Ian, however, recovered and eventually returned home on September 21 after spending some time in hospital. In November, Erin was formally charged in connection with the incident.
This eventually led to a trial in which she was accused of deliberately contaminating the food with death cap mushrooms, highly toxic fungi that she picked based on their location posted on a public website. Her defence countered by claiming that this was a 'terrible accident' that occurred when Erin tried to enhance the dish's taste.
Death cap mushrooms contain amanita toxins, which interfere with protein synthesis in liver cells and potentially cause liver failure approximately two days after being eaten.
Originally from Europe, Death cap mushrooms have been spotted in multiple Australian states. Around the time of the 'Mushroom Murders' , they were said to be growing not far from Patterson's residence in rural Victoria.
The verdict suggests that the jury agreed with the prosecution's claims about Erin travelling to two sites to deliberately pick Death cap mushrooms for the meal.
Interestingly, Erin had fed the leftover Beef Wellington to her children after scraping off the mushrooms and pastry.
What's next for Erin Patterson?
Now that Erin Patterson has been found guilty, she will be taken into custody. This will be followed by a plea hearing on a later date, which is when the defence and prosecution will make submissions about what they think the sentence should be. The actual sentencing will take place later with Erin facing a maximum of a life sentence.
Under Australian law, Erin will have 28 days from the date of sentencing to start filling an appeal against the verdict. The legal team may verdict itself, the term handed down, or even target both
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Australia's 'mushroom killer' found guilty on all counts: How Erin Patterson poisoned her estranged in-laws at lunch
In what is being called Australia's 'trial of the century', Erin Patterson was found guilty of murdering her estranged husband's parents and aunt by spiking their sumptuous lunch with death cap mushrooms in 2023. While the mother of two maintained her innocence throughout, investigators found that she lied about multiple things including having ovarian cancer. Patterson will be sentenced at a later date read more Erin Patterson said she never intended to kill or harm the people she loved. She admitted lying to police -- but only because she feared being blamed for a deadly accident. AFP Australian Erin Patterson served a beef Wellington lunch that was 'delicious' by all accounts, using eye fillet steak, flaky golden pastry, and the deadliest mushrooms known to man. The keen home cook murdered her husband's parents and aunt in 2023 by spiking their sumptuous Saturday lunch with death cap mushrooms, a jury found on Monday. For more than two months, Patterson's trial has been followed around the world, the sense of intrigue fuelled by her choice of dish, method of murder, and the mystery of her motive. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The courtroom spectacle has been dubbed Australia's 'trial of the century'. Patterson, 50, hosted the intimate family lunch at her tree-shaded home in the farming village of Leongatha on July 29, 2023. The mother-of-two planned a menu to match what she said was a 'special' occasion, dishing up beef Wellington, green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy. Joining her that afternoon were Don and Gail Patterson, the elderly parents of her long-estranged husband Simon. Simon's maternal aunt Heather Wilkinson and her husband Ian, a well-known pastor at the local Baptist church, rounded out the group. Patterson was disappointed husband Simon refused to come because he felt 'uncomfortable'. Still legally married, their once-cordial relationship was showing signs of strain. 'I hope you'll change your mind,' she texted in reply, to no avail. The fateful lunch Patterson forked out for expensive cuts of fillet steak, slathering the meat in minced mushrooms before coating it in pastry to make individual parcels of baked beef Wellington. Death cap mushrooms are easily mistaken for other edible varieties and reportedly possess a sweet taste that belies their potent toxicity. Death cap mushrooms are easily mistaken for other edible varieties and reportedly possess a sweet taste that belies their potent toxicity. Image for Representation The guests gobbled up so much of the deadly feast that they had little appetite for the cake laid out as dessert, the trial heard. As they ate, Patterson told the group she had cancer and needed help telling her children, Pastor Ian recalled during the trial. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The group prayed and asked for 'God's blessing on Erin'. Heather later raved about the food, telling a friend it was 'delicious and beautiful'. Even as the first waves of sickness wracked her body, she could find no fault with the cooking. 'I did ask Heather what the beef Wellington tasted like and she said it was delicious,' doctor Christopher Webster told the trial. But the guests' blood was soon coursing with deadly amatoxin, a potent poison produced by death cap mushrooms to ward off hungry forest critters. Don, Gail and Heather died of organ failure within a week. Ian was the only guest to survive. The deadly mushrooms A humble weatherboard building knocked together in 1895, the lives of Patterson and her victims in many ways revolved around the Korumburra Baptist Church. Ian was the long-serving pastor, preaching to a small but hardy flock every Sunday. Patterson was less devout but still helped livestream the church's services on social media. A short drive from the neat church yard lies the local cemetery, a plot of land framed by grazing cattle and gently sloping hills. This photo taken in Leongatha on May 28, 2025 shows a general view of the home of Erin Patterson. AFP Plastic pink and white flowers mark the graves of Don and Gail almost two years since they were buried. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Just remember that death is not the end,' reads a plaque for the couple. It is a swathe of rural Australia well known for its lush woodlands and verdant native forests. And it is exactly the sort of damp, fertile place where death cap mushrooms – or Amanita phalloides – freely sprout in the wild. Blamed for 90 per cent of the world's fungus-related fatalities, a single mushroom contains enough poison to send the liver into catastrophic failure. 'Super sleuth' Described as witty and intelligent, Patterson was a devoted mother, an avid book collector and a cooking enthusiast. She was a busy cog in her tight-knit community, volunteering to edit the village newsletter. Patterson was also a true crime buff, joining a Facebook group to chew over details from infamous Australian murders. Friend Christine Hunt told the trial Patterson had a reputation as 'a bit of a super sleuth'. Patterson and husband Simon split in 2015, but did their best to stay on friendly terms. By 2022, this once-cordial relationship had soured, marred by arguments over Simon's child support obligations. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Patterson told a friend her husband was 'coercive', the trial heard. She was frustrated her parents-in-law had refused to take her side in the dispute. 'I'm sick of this shit I want nothing to do with them,' Patterson wrote to a friend on Facebook several months prior to the lunch. A series of lies Almost 100 days passed between the beef-and-pastry feast and Patterson's arrest in early November 2023. Patterson seemed to cooperate with the mounting investigation, attending police interviews, speaking with health officials and willingly handing over her phone and computers. But detectives would soon uncover signs she dished up the meal with murderous intent. Patterson lied about having ovarian cancer in a bid to lure the guests to her house, prosecutors told the trial after finding no medical records of the illness. She also lied about owning a food dehydrator used to prepare the mushrooms, which police found at a nearby rubbish tip. It tested positive for traces of death cap mushrooms." ) A handout court sketch drawn from a video link on June 2, 2025, and received on June 19, 2025, shows Erin Patterson. AFP Patterson suggested she accidentally bought the death caps at an Asian grocer near Melbourne. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Food safety officers found no sign of the shop. Death cap sightings were posted on a nature-lovers' website months before Patterson baked the tainted dish. Phone records suggested she may have visited these spots in the lead-up to the meal. Before she was taken into custody, Patterson would tearfully speak to a crowd of journalists gathered outside her home. 'I am devastated. I loved them. I cannot believe this has happened and I am so sorry they have lost their lives.' 'Trial of the century' Patterson's trial was held in the nearby town of Morwell, a sedate hamlet better known for its yearly rose garden festival. Crowds of journalists, podcasters, and true crime fans swarmed to catch a glimpse of what would soon be billed Australia's 'trial of the century'. Newspapers from New York to New Delhi picked up every morsel of courtroom drama. More than 50 witnesses spoke across eight full weeks of testimony: doctors, nurses, fungi experts, detectives, and Patterson's estranged husband. Then, finally, the cook herself took the stand. Patterson said she never intended to kill or harm the people she loved. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD She admitted lying to police – but only because she feared being blamed for a deadly accident. 'I agree that I lied because I was afraid I would be held responsible,' she told the trial. The jury took almost a full week of deliberations to judge Patterson guilty. She will be sentenced at a later date. Ian, the sole lunch survivor, sat through almost every hour of the trial. When his time came to testify, he could offer no explanation for what drove Patterson to murder. 'When we met, things were friendly. We never had arguments or disputes,' he said. 'She just seemed like an ordinary person.'
