Woman who cooked poisonous mushroom lunch 'that killed three people' admits she lied to police

The woman alleged to have killed her in-laws after cooking them poisonous mushrooms has admitted that she lied to police.

Last week, the news broke that several people had mysteriously died following a family lunch in Victoria, Australia.

Erin Patterson had invited her former in-laws Gail and Don Patterson, both 70, along with Mrs Patterson's sister, Heather Wilkinson, 66, and her husband Reverend Ian Wilkinson, 68, to the meal on 29 July.

However, tragedy struck several days after the lunch when the four guests all fell seriously ill after eating a beef Wellington, which contained dried mushrooms.

Mrs Wilkinson and Mrs Patterson both passed away on 4 August, and Mr Patterson died the following day (5 August).

Mr Wilkinson is still in hospital and is said to be in a critical condition while he awaits a liver transplant.

Since then, police have been investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths. And now, due to allegations by her ex-husband, Simon Patterson, that she had poisoned his parents, Ms Patterson has spoken out.

A Current Affair

In a letter to police, which was obtained by ABC, the mother-of-two said that she had nothing to do with it.

"I am now wanting to clear up the record because I have become extremely stressed and overwhelmed by the deaths of my loved ones," she wrote.

"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."

Following news that police had recovered a food dehydrator from the local tip, Ms Patterson also admitted that she lied to police.

In her statement, the 48-year-old said that she was not telling the truth when she claimed she had thrown the dehydrator out 'a long time ago'.

Ms Patterson told the police that she was at the hospital with her children 'discussing the food dehydrator' when her ex-husband is said to have asked: "Is that what you used to poison them?"

Family handout

Terrified she may lose her kids, Ms Patterson said she went and threw the dehydrator out.

In her note, Ms Patterson once again expressed her love for her in-laws and said she continued to have a good relationship with them.

She added: "I had a deep love and respect for Simon's parents and had encouraged my children to spend time with their grandparents as I believed they were exceptional role models."

In her statement, Mrs Patterson said that she also fell ill two days after the meal and had to be hospitalised and administered a 'liver protective drug'.

However, she said her two kids, who were not at the lunch, had eaten the leftover beef Wellington but that the mushrooms had been removed.

Victoria Police said there was no update on the investigation.

"Beyond that, we are not commenting on specific details of the case or what actions police will undertake as part of the investigation," a spokesperson said.

"If there are any updates we are able to release publicly, we will certainly let everyone know."