 A woman who cooked up a dish with toxic mushrooms that killed three of her relatives and left one fighting for his life is an experienced fungi forager, according to a family friend. Erin Patterson has denied any wrongdoing after serving a deadly beef wellington to her ex-husband's parents and former in-laws. But now a source close to the family has said she was known to expertly pick wild mushrooms around Victoria's Gippsland region on a fairly regular basis. The 48-year-old was 'very good at foraging' and identifying the different types of mushrooms, a friend of the Patterson family said. They told Daily Mail Australia: 'The Patterson family (including Erin and Simon) would pick mushrooms each year when they were in season. 'It's very common for people to go mushroom picking around that area.' Erin's estranged husband Simon Patterson was due to be at the lunch at her home in Leongatha, Victoria, Australia on July 29 but he pulled out at the last minute. Simon Patterson, Erin's ex-husband, did not come to the meal Those who were at the fateful meal were Simon's parents Gail and Don Patterson, both 70, Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, and Gail's husband Ian Wilkinson, 68. They had gathered for a 'mediation' meeting to discuss Erin and Simon's relationship, but within days the Pattersons and Ms Wilkinson were dead. Mr Wilkinson, meanwhile, remains in a critical condition at Austin Hospital in Melbourne awaiting a liver transplant. He is also thought to have suffered severe damage to his kidneys and is understood to be heavily sedated after spending several days on life support in a coma. Heather Wilkinson, left, died after eating the meal, while her husband Ian Wilkinson, right, is fighting for his life in hospital As the lone survivor, his recovery could hold the vital key to the case and shed light on what really happened that day. Homicide detectives a){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
A woman who cooked up a beef wellington lunch with toxic mushrooms that killed three of her relatives and left one fighting for his life is an experienced fungi forager, according to a family friend.
Erin Patterson has denied any wrongdoing after serving a deadly meal to her ex-husband’s parents and former in-laws.
But now a source close to the family has said she was known to expertly pick wild mushrooms around Victoria’s Gippsland region on a fairly regular basis.
The 48-year-old was ‘very good at foraging’ and identifying the different types of mushrooms, a friend of the Patterson family said.