An Australian mother has been found guilty of murdering her estranged husband's parents and an aunt by serving them a meal laced with poisonous mushrooms. Erin Patterson, 50 invited her former in laws Don and Gail Patterson, both 70 to lunch 9 July 2023 accompanied by Gail Patterson’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66.

Patterson was also found guilty of the attempted murder of Mrs Wilkinson's husband Reverend Ian Wilkinson. All four guests fell ill following the lunch the town of Leongatha, which consisted of beef wellington, mashed potatoes and green beans the court was told. Prosecutors had alleged that the mother of two laced the meal with deadly death cap mushrooms, also known as Amanita phalloides.

The court heard how all four became ill after eating their meal off four large grey dinner plates, while Patterson ate hers off a smaller, tan coloured plate.

The prosecutions case alleged that she ate of a visibly different plate in order to ensure that there was no cross contamination.

All four fell ill in the hours following the meal, Mrs Wilkinson and Mrs Patterson dying on 4 August 2023 while Mr Patterson succumb to his illness a day later.

Patterson’s estranged husband had initially agreed to attend the lunch but later pulled out. The paid had been separated since 2015.

Reverend Wilkinson said that immediately after the meal, Patterson told the group that she had been diagnosed with cancer, suggesting that she had invited them in order to get their advice on the best way to tell her children.

The defence did not dispute the Reverand’s claims.

The trial lasted much longer than the original forecast of six weeks, with dozens of expert witnesses called to testify, with Patterson spending eight days giving her testimony.

Both Patterson and her ex-husband told in testimony how their relationship had remained amiable since their split until around 2022 when things started to deteriorate.

Responding to Simon’s decision to pull out of the lunch the night before, she texted him: “I wanted it to be a special meal, as I may not be able to host a lunch like this again for some time."

The case has attracted significant public interest thanks to the method used by Patterson to slay her victims, with the courtroom experiencing a large media scrum outside it each morning made up of traditional media as well as new forms such as podcasters and Youtubers.

Patterson had maintained her innocence throughout and such was her confidence in the likelihood of a not guilty verdict that she had erected fencing around her home to shield her from the media’s gaze upon her return.

However, the guilty verdict will now see her likely spend decades behind bars as one of Australia’s most notorious female killers.