Suspected poison mushroom killer’s daughter ate leftovers of fatal meal

A nurse told the court that Patterson’s children were still at risk because the death cap mushroom toxin could have 'seeped through the meat.'

The latest development in the high-profile Australian court case of Erin Patterson, who has been charged with the murders of her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson and her ex-husband’s aunt Heather Wilkinson, and the attempted murder of her ex-husband’s uncle Ian Wilkinson, features a video of her daughter giving evidence to police.

On the eighth day of the murder trial, the video, recorded on Aug. 16, 2023, shows her daughter talking to police about the meal her mother made on July 29 of that same year.

Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty and her legal team says she “panicked” after unintentionally serving poison to her family members in a “terrible accident.”

Her daughter, who has not been named, told police she ate leftovers of the deadly mushroom meal of beef Wellington, mashed potatoes and green beans with her mother and brother the day after her mother served it to her former in-laws and the Wilkinsons.

Patterson’s daughter said her mother said she was sick on the morning of July 30, the day after the lunch.

Later that night, Patterson served her children and herself “leftovers” from the meal, including mashed potatoes, green beans and steak — but no mushrooms.

When the officer asked Patterson’s daughter to tell him everything she could remember about the lunch her mother hosted, she said, “I wasn’t there so I don’t know.”

She told the officer that her mother said “she wanted to have a lunch with my grandparents and Heather and Ian,” and that they were going to talk about “adult stuff,” according to The Guardian.