A mud-covered note on an unmarked grave has revealed the eerie resting place of a deceased couple of suspected mushroom poisoning.
Gail and Don Patterson, Erin Patterson’s elderly in-laws, were buried in a secret ceremony on Tuesday.
The pair died nearly a week apart, almost a week after eating a beef Wellington dish, which was believed to contain poisonous death cap mushrooms.
Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, also died after the meal, while her husband, Baptist minister Ian Wilkinson, is in hospital in critical but stable condition.
Located on a grassy section of the Korumburra General Cemetery, the still unmarked plot overlooks the cattle grazing on lush, green hills.
About a dozen carloads of mourners gathered at the lot to say goodbye to the beloved couple.
The final resting place of Don and Gail Patterson
Don and Gail Patterson have been quietly buried in a private service attended by ‘close relatives only’ just over three weeks after they were reportedly fatally poisoned by a Beef Wellington lunch of Death Cap mushrooms
Korumburra General Cemetery where the Pattersons were said goodbye on Tuesday
A muddy note attached to a bouquet of flowers reads, “Loving memories of Donald and Gail.”
Another note read: ‘Forever in our hearts’.
The family was buried in a private service with “close relatives only” in attendance.
Their son’s ex-wife, Erin, who cooked the meal, remains a “person of interest” but is not in custody.
A spokesperson for the family has not confirmed whether Ms. Patterson, along with the two school-aged children she shares with her ex-husband, Simon Patterson, attended the funeral.
A note on the grave of Don and Gail Patterson
Simon Patterson was reported to have held his parents’ private funeral with his children earlier this week, though it’s not clear if his estranged wife Erin Patterson attended the service.
The final resting place of Don and Gail Patterson
Gail and Don Patterson will be publicly honored at a memorial service at the Korumburra Recreation Center on August 31.
“The Patterson family has expressed their deep gratitude for the outpouring of love, support and understanding during this challenging time,” the family said in a statement.
“In keeping with Don and Gail’s wishes and character, the family has chosen to memorialize their lives in a way that reflects their values and the love they shared with their community.”
The couple, both 70, died in hospital after lunch at their daughter-in-law’s Leongatha home on July 29.
Police believe all of their symptoms were consistent with death cap mushroom poisoning.
In a statement to police, Ms Patterson said she had made a Beef Wellington pie with mushrooms from a large supermarket and dried mushrooms bought from an Asian supermarket.
The 48-year-old said her ex-husband would attend the lunch but backed out, with her children also out of the house at the time of the meal.
Ms Patterson said her children ate the leftover beef Wellington the next day with the mushrooms scraped off.
Erin Patterson cooked the Beef Wellington lunch that allegedly contained the Death Cap mushrooms, which contain the most deadly toxins on Earth
About a dozen carloads of mourners gathered at the lot to say goodbye to the beloved couple
Gail Wilkinson also died after eating lunch, but her husband, Baptist pastor Ian Wilkinson (right) is still alive and in hospital, needing a liver transplant
She also said she ate a portion and later suffered severe abdominal pain and diarrhea, contrary to detectives’ suggestion that she did not become ill.
Victoria Police have not commented on Ms Patterson’s statement, other than saying it was not taken by officers, nor have they provided any updates on their investigation.
The Victorian Health Department must act if a food safety incident occurs.
There have been no ordered mushroom product recalls in the state since the suspected poisonings.