• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Forensic toxicologist reveals symptoms mushroom poisoning victims could have had before tragic death

Home> News> Health

Published 19:08 29 Aug 2023 GMT+1

Forensic toxicologist reveals symptoms mushroom poisoning victims could have had before tragic death

Forensic toxicologist Dr Michael Robertson said the first phase the unfortunate lunch guests would have faced is 'debilitating'.

Gregory Robinson

Gregory Robinson

Featured Image Credit: Channel Nine

Topics: Australia, Erin Patterson, Health, News, TV and Film, Food And Drink

Gregory Robinson
Gregory Robinson

Gregory is a journalist for LADbible. After graduating with a master's degree in journalism, he has worked for both print and online publications and is particularly interested in TV, (pop) music and lifestyle. He loves Madonna, teen dramas from the '90s and prefers tea over coffee.

Advert

Advert

Advert

A Forensic toxicologist has revealed the devastating symptoms of death cap mushroom poisoning after three people - who are suspected of consuming the substance - died.

Back in July, Erin Patterson, 48, cooked a beef wellington lunch at her home in Leongatha, Victoria, Australia, for her ex-husband’s relatives.

Peterson’s lunch guests included parents-in-law Gail and Don Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66. All of them died within a few days of consuming the meal, meanwhile Heather’s husband Ian, 68, survived after spending several days on life support while in a coma in hospital.

The case has gripped the world as investigations into the deaths are still being carried out by police in Australia. Ms Patterson has denied any wrongdoing and said she did not know the mushrooms in her dish were poisonous.

Advert

As the search for answers continues, forensic toxicologist, Dr Michael Robertson, has revealed the horrific symptoms he believes the guests may have suffered after consuming the deadly fungi.

People tend to start feeling unwell several hours after eating the mushrooms, but will eventually begin to feel better again, but this is actually the body slowly shutting down.

Erin Patterson denied any wrongdoing.
Nine News

In an episode of Channel Nine’s Under Investigation titled ‘The Last Lunch’, he said: “We’ve heard about the violent vomiting and diarrhoea and that first phase can be quite debilitating in itself.

“It’s one of those toxins that gets into your system.

Advert

“It gets absorbed into the bloodstream, it then gets transported to the liver and absorbed. The body doesn’t break this toxin down.

“We’ve got to get rid of it usually in the urine but also in the bile, and the bile duct drops bile back into the intestines.“It’s triggering basically the death of the liver cells."

Dr Robertson explained that the Ms Patterson’s guests may have gone into comas before they died.

“It would’ve been horrible if they remained conscious,” he added.

“They may have gone into a coma, if they remained conscious, certainly that first day would’ve been absolutely horrific.”

Advert

In a written statement to police, obtained exclusively by ABC News, Ms Patterson - who has maintained her innocence - gave a detailed account of what happened in the run-up to and aftermath of the meal, including an accusation made by her estranged husband, Simon Patterson.

Don and Gail Patterson sadly died earlier this month.
Family handout

The account began: "I am now wanting to clear up the record because I have become extremely stressed and overwhelmed by the deaths of my loved ones.

"I am hoping this statement might help in some way. I believe if people understood the background more, they would not be so quick to rush to judgement.

"I am now devastated to think that these mushrooms may have contributed to the illness suffered by my loved ones. I really want to repeat that I had absolutely no reason to hurt these people whom I loved."

  • People stunned to discover how death row prisoner spent final hours before his final meal
  • Partner of man feared brain dead after food poisoning 'from £3 supermarket sandwich' issues urgent warning
  • Death Row inmate did 'good deed' with final meal request just hours before being executed
  • Man who restricted diet to nothing but red meat and eggs for a year reveals shocking impact it had on his body

Choose your content:

2 hours ago
3 hours ago
4 hours ago
  • 2 hours ago

    Man horrified to discover his new home is actually someone else's Airbnb

    Ben Echianu, from Manchester, branded the woman whom he believes posed as a landlord as 'heartless'

    News
  • 3 hours ago

    Christian Horner releases statement after being sacked by Red Bull after 20 years

    Horner shared a lengthy statement on social media

    News
  • 4 hours ago

    Donald Trump shuts down reporter who asked Jeffrey Epstein question following release of CCTV footage

    It seems the US President deems the topic to be no longer up for discussion

    News
  • 4 hours ago

    Cardiologist who had heart attack warns people to not 'make same mistake' over little-known warning sign

    The irony isn't lost on Dr William Wilson

    News