Leongatha poisoning deaths: Chef who prepared deadly mushroom dish went to hospital despite showing no symptoms of poisoning
The woman who was the center of a poisonous mushroom luncheon that killed three people and one who needed a liver transplant went to the hospital despite not being extremely sick like her dinner guests.
Erin Patterson, 48, has been declared a person of interest by police after cooking a deadly beef wellington on July 29 that killed her former in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66 .
Heather’s pastor husband Ian Wilkinson, 68, also attended the lunch and is still fighting for life at Austin Hospital in Melbourne.
All four guests went to Leongatha Hospital after experiencing ‘gastro-like symptoms’ the day after lunch, before being taken to Melbourne hospitals after their condition deteriorated dramatically.
In the following days, Gail, Heather and Don would all die in the hospital.
Neither Erin nor the two children she shares with ex-husband Simon got sick, but a “fifth adult” reportedly went to Leongatha Hospital.
It’s unclear if Erin ate the beef wellington, but she clearly wasn’t as sick as her in-laws, if at all, despite the food reportedly containing deadly mushrooms. The children did not eat the food.
Erin Patterson, 48, has been named a person of interest after cooking lunch for her former in-laws Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66 on July 29
All four guests presented themselves at Leongatha Hospital (pictured) after experiencing ‘gastro-like symptoms’ the day after lunch before being transferred to Melbourne hospitals
The above family tree shows the connections between the Pattersons and Wilkinsons embroiled in the unusual Leongatha poisoning drama
A press release from the hospital: ‘A fifth person has been discharged after a short presentation at Leongatha Hospital.’
Leongatha Hospital declined to comment when Daily Mail Australia contacted him.
Erin has maintained her innocence by telling a media pack outside her home earlier this week that she “loved” her in-laws, who had only shown her kindness.
On Friday, Erin was photographed withdrawing money from an ATM on William Street in the heart of Melbourne.
She was spotted just after 2pm at a National Australia Bank branch wearing the same red shirt and white trousers she was pictured in on Tuesday.
The sighting comes as a close friend of Erin’s ex-husband Simon – who was invited to lunch but backed out at the last minute – told Daily Mail Australia that last year he had questioned a mysterious stomach illness that almost killed him .
Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting that Erin tried to poison Simon, only that he made the claim.
Simon’s mysterious illness led to him spending 21 days in an intensive care unit and he was forced to spend months in rehab.
Several of his friends told Daily Mail Australia that at the time he did not suspect the mysterious illness was related to foul play.
A friend, who wished to remain anonymous, told Daily Mail Australia that if Simon knew what caused the illness, he would not have told friends or family.
“He has worked very hard to rehabilitate. He went and stayed with his parents and at that time there was no question of anything untoward,” the friend said.
The couple had already divorced when Simon fell ill.
Simon Patterson would join his parents for the lunch that cost them their lives
Gail and Don Patterson died after eating the mushrooms prepared by their former daughter-in-law on July 29. Erin was previously married to their son, Simon
During the time Mr. Patterson was in hospital, his ex-wife continued to update his concerned friends on social media about his condition.
“As far as we all knew, they were very friendly. He never said a bad word about her. He wouldn’t. They have kids together and he’s that kind of person,” said a friend.
Daily Mail Australia revealed on Thursday that Erin’s toxic luncheon was arranged to try and broker a reconciliation with her former husband.
The revelation that Erin wanted to get back together with her estranged husband, who backed out of lunch at the last minute, came amid reports that the deadly dish she served was a beef wellington.
A source close to Simon Patterson told Daily Mail Australia that his partner had no interest in getting back together with the mother of his two children.
“They went to her house for a mediation to talk to the family. Simon was going to have lunch there, but withdrew at the last minute, otherwise he would also be in that deathbed,” the friend said on Thursday.
“The people who died, Gail, Don and the Wilkinsons, spoke to them because they are deeply rooted in the church and they wanted to make sure she was right to resume a relationship with Simon… back with him and the family didn’t think that was a good move.’
The boyfriend claimed that Erin was desperate to get back together with her estranged husband.
“She wanted to go back with Simon and the family didn’t want Simon to come back with her,” he said.
“They didn’t really think she was good enough for him in their eyes.
‘This was not just a lunch, it was an intervention with the pastor as a mediator. That’s why this lunch happened.’
Erin has denied any wrongdoing and no charges are expected at this stage of the investigation.
Daily Mail Australia does not suggest that Erin was responsible for Simon’s illness or the three deaths.