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The Irish Sun
08-07-2025
- The Irish Sun
Sole survivor of mushroom killer Erin Patterson's meal breaks silence with moving 8-word message after bombshell verdict
THE sole survivor of mushroom killer Erin Patterson's poisoned lunch has broken his silence - a day after she was found guilty of murder and attempted murder. Advertisement 12 Ian Wilkinson, the sole survivor of Erin Patterson's murder plot, has spoken out for the first time since her conviction Credit: AFP 12 Erin Patterson was found guilty of murdering three in-law relatives with death cap mushrooms in a beef Wellington, and the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson Credit: AFP 12 Ian alongside his wife Heather Wilkinson, who died Credit: Nine 12 The poisoned beef Wellington that Patterson served to her guests Credit: AFP The mother-of-two was also found guilty of attempting to murder Heather's husband, Ian Wilkinson, a local church pastor. Ian He gave a powerful testimony in court - and his evidence may have been crucial as the only witness to the fatal meal who was still able to speak out. One of his revelations was that Patterson told the party that she had been diagnosed with a cancerous tumour - which turned out to be nonsense. Advertisement read more on the case Now, he has shared a moving message via the noticeboard outside the Korumburra Baptist Church, where he has been a pastor for two years. It reads: "Life can be hard, but God is faithful. "We all greatly miss Heather, Don and Gail, whether we were friends for a short time or over 20 years. "They were very special people who loved God and lived to bless others. Advertisement Most read in The US Sun Exclusive Exclusive 'It's been a long journey, and we continue to lovingly support Ian, Simon and all the Wilkinson and Patterson family members through this difficult time. "We appreciate all the care from our local communities, special support from individuals and from the Baptist Union of Victoria, and the churches and people from all over the world who have been praying for us." 'Mushroom killer' Erin Patterson GUILTY of murdering three relatives with deadly beef wellington Ian sat through almost every day of the However, he was not in court to hear Monday's verdict - choosing to spend that crucial moment with family and friends. Advertisement Detective Inspector Dean Thomas from the Victoria Police Homicide Squad said after sentencing that the Patterson and Wilkinson families had requested privacy and would not be giving any public statements. Their lives have been dragged into the public eye since Erin was charged in November 2023, culminating in one of the most publicised trials in Australia for years - which finally delivered answers to most of the cases's mysteries. 12 Don Patterson, Erin's former father-in-law, died Credit: Nine 12 Gail Patterson, Erin's former mother-in-law, also died Credit: Nine Advertisement The prosecution got their hands on the remains of the deadly beef Wellington, a dehydrator she used, and even photos of death cap mushrooms. However, they never managed to locate the killer's primary phone. Patterson gave investigators a device, dubbed Phone B, that she claimed was hers when the deaths were first looked into - but there were immediately suspicions that it was a decoy device. Advertisement CCTV footage from July 31, 2023, shows Patterson in hospital after the meal with a Samsung in a light pink case - but this was not the one police received. That mobile, Phone A, continues to confound. Police said Patterson had primarily used Phone A from February 2023 until August 2023, which Patterson accepted. But she argued that she handed officers Phone B because she was in the process of switching devices so that her ex-husband couldn't contact her Advertisement 12 Patterson always denied the claims, but has been found guilty on all charges Credit: Reuters 12 Patterson's home in Leongatha, Australia, where the lunch was held Credit: Getty It was from this pink Samsung that Patterson organised the lunch and sent out the fatal invites. Texts shown in court reveal that she tried desperately to get her ex-husband, Simon, to come to the lunch as well - but he refused. Advertisement After he tells Patterson that he is "too uncomfortable" to go to the lunch, she replies: "That's really disappointing," and seemingly attempts to guilt trip him into coming. Something else to come out in the trial was the surprising extent of wealth that Patterson has accumulated. She wrote: "I've spent many hours this week preparing lunch for tomorrow [...] and spent a small fortune on beef eye filet to make beef Wellingtons." After being brought up in a middle-class Melbourne suburb, Patterson had recently become much richer - helped along by a $2million cash dump from her paternal grandmother's estate. Advertisement Her father, Eitan Scutter, was a director in multiple Australian companies - and his mother was the major source of Patterson's money. 12 A court sketch of Patterson during her trial in June Credit: AFP 12 The dining area where the deadly feast was served up Credit: AFP 12 Patterson tried to persuade her estranged husband to come to the lunch over text Advertisement DI Thomas said: "It's very important that we remember we've had three people; three people died and we've had a person that nearly died and was seriously injured as a result; that has led to these charges. "I ask that we acknowledge those people and not forget them. "I ask also that the Patterson family and Wilkinson family have asked for privacy during this time." Both Ian and Patterson's ex-husband, Simon, whose parents were both killed, have put up notices outside their houses to deflect further unwanted attention. Advertisement The sign outside Ian's residence reads: "Warning: entry to this property by any persons employed by or working on behalf of the media is not permitted. "Trespassers will be reported to the police." 12 The Baptist Church in Korumburra where Ian Wilkinson works as a pastor Credit: AFP
Daily Mirror
26-06-2025
- Daily Mirror
Beef wellington 'poisoner' accused of 14 'incriminating' actions as in-laws died
Prosecutors allege Erin Patterson, 66, deliberately served a beef wellington laced with deadly mushrooms to her in-laws - while her defence insists it was a tragic accident Jurors in the murder trial of Erin Patterson - accused of killing three people by serving them a beef wellington laced with deadly mushrooms - have been taken through 14 alleged acts of incriminating conduct the prosecution claims point to the Aussie's guilt. Prosecutors allege Erin, 66, deliberately used poisonous mushrooms in the dish, while her defence insists it was a tragic accident involving mushrooms she had foraged. Her in-laws - Don and Gail Patterson, both aged 70, and Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson, 66 - were hospitalised after eating the beef wellington and died days later. Ian Wilkinson, the uncle of Patterson's estranged husband, also fell seriously ill but survived after weeks of treatment. Summing up the evidence on Wednesday, trial judge Justice Christopher Beale listed the incriminating acts the prosecution argues are 'implied admissions of guilt'. He added that the prosecution argues the only reasonable explanation for the conduct is that Ms Patterson knew she was guilty. The allegedly incriminating conduct includes: She lied about being unwell and faked death cap mushroom poisoning; She lied that she used dried mushrooms from an Asian grocery; She refused treatment on her first presentation at Leongatha Hospital and discharged herself against medical advice; She was reluctant to accept treatment for herself on her second presentation at Leongatha Hospital; She was reluctant to obtain medical treatment for her children on July 31; She lied that she had fed her children the leftover beef wellingtons with the mushrooms and pastry scrapped off; She reset Phone B multiple times commencing on August 2; She disposed of the dehydrator at the local tip; On August 5 she provided police Phone B instead of her usual mobile phone which has never been recovered; She lied to police during her record of interview on August 5 that the SIM in Phone B was her usual service; She lied in her record of interview that she'd never foraged for mushrooms; She lied in her record of interview about never using a dehydrator or dehydrating things; She lied in her record of interview about owning a dehydrator; She lied in her record of interview by saying she may have owed a dehydrator years ago. Ms Patterson, 50, is now at the centre of one of Australia's most gripping murder trials, having pleaded not guilty to murdering her in-laws. She also denies a charge of attempted murder for Ian Wilkinson - the uncle of her estranged husband. Prosecutors allege the poisoning was no accident, pointing to online searches made more than a year earlier. Senior police forensic expert Shaman Fox-Henry told the court that a computer linked to Patterson had been used to search the iNaturalist webite for death cap mushtoom sightings in Victoria in May 2022 - narrowing in on a park in Moorabbin. Her defence, led by Colin Mandy SC, argues the case is an accidental poisoning and his client did not intend to harm anyone. The prosecution claims Patterson deliberately searched for death cap mushrooms using the website. Justice Beale said the jury can reasonably infer it was her who accessed the site on a computer found at her home, though there's no evidence she viewed the exact posts prosecutors allege led her to the deadly fungi. The defence agrees it was likely her using the site - but say it was a brief visit to check if death caps grew in South Gippsland. Photos of mushrooms on a dehydrator tray were also found on a Samsung tablet. A fungi expert said one was "consistent" with a death cap. Prosecutors say the timing of the images matches her purchase of a dehydrator on April 28 and suggest the mushrooms were picked at Loch. But the defence argued there's no way to confirm when the photos were taken. Another key detail included a phone handed to police that had been factory reset multiple times - on August 2, August 5 and remotely wiped on August 6. The prosecution says one reset happened while police searched her home, and another while the phone was in police custody. Justice Beale reminded jurors that Patterson accepted someone accessed the mushroom map, "possibly" her, but claimed she didn't remember. "I don't remember this internet search, it was possibly me, I remember wanting to find out at one point if death cap mushrooms grew in South Gippsland and finding out they did not," he quoted her as saying. She also told the court she didn't recall using iNaturalist and had no real "interest" in death caps beyond local curiosity. During his charge on Tuesday, Justice Beale told jurors they must focus only on the evidence - and must 'scrupulously guard' against feelings of sympathy for the Patterson and Wilkinson families. "Any decent person would feel great sympathy… but you must scrupulously guard against that sympathy interfering with the performance of your duty," he said. He also urged jurors to ignore media coverage and outside opinions. "You and you alone are best placed to decide whether the prosecution has proven their case beyond reasonable doubt," he said. As his charge to the jury continued, he joked, "No need to bring your toothbrush" on Wednesday. The trial continues.
West Australian
02-06-2025
- West Australian
Erin Patterson trial: Alleged mushroom poisoner changed phones frequently
Alleged triple-killer Erin Patterson rotated through mobile phones at a 'frequent' pace, moving her SIM nine times over four years, her trial has been told. On Monday jurors in the trial, now in it's sixth week, continued to hear from Detective leading Senior Constable Stephen Eppingstall. Under cross examination from defence barrister Colin Mandy SC, Constable Eppingstall was taken through a 'flow chart' that tracked Ms Patterson's phones from 2019 to 2023. The record indicates she changed between seven different phones, from LG, Nokia, Samsung and Oppo, nine times until August 2023. The detective agreed the chart indicated the 'reasonably frequent setting up' of phones. Previously the jury was told prosecutors allege a Samsung A23, dubbed Phone B in the trial, was factory reset three times before it was handed over to police on August 5 and once remotely the following day. Mr Mandy took Constable Eppingstall to a section of the flow chart, that showed a factory reset on February 12 was followed by Ms Patterson's son's SIM card being placed into the phone. The barrister asked if this was 'consistent' with the son taking over the use of that phone. 'Yes, sir,' the officer responded. Next Mr Mandy took Constable Eppingstall to phone records from a second Samsung A23 dubbed 'Phone A' in the trial. Prosecutors allege this was Ms Patterson's phone used in the period preceding and immediately after the lunch. Last week, Constable Eppingstall told the jury the phone had never been located by police. Mr Mandy confirmed the Telstra records indicate the SIM card 'lost connection' with the network sometime between 12.01pm and 1.45pm on August 5. It next connected in a different handset, receiving a text message at 1.44am on August 6, he said. Constable Eppingstall agreed, saying 'that's my understanding' of the records. Constable Eppingstall, the jury was told last week, was the final witness prosecutors planned to call in their case against Ms Patterson. The 50-year-old is facing trial after pleading not guilty to murdering three of her husband's relatives and the attempted murder of a fourth. Prosecutors allege a beef Wellington lunch she served on July 29, 2023, was deliberately poisoned with death cap mushrooms, while her defence argues the case is a tragic accident. Her husband Simon Patterson's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt, Heather Wilkinson died from organ failure in after falling ill following the meal Ms Patterson hosted at her Leongatha home in Victoria's southeast. Ms Wilkinson's husband, long-serving Korumburra Baptist Church pastor Ian Wilkinson, fell ill following the lunch but recovered after spending about a month and a half in hospital. The trial continues.
