Erin Patterson's toxic mushroom murder trial in pictures
Beef Wellington
Some of the released photos are of the beef Wellington leftovers, which were collected from Patterson's home.The leftovers were collected in specimen bags to prevent contamination, before being taken for examination.
The leftovers, which police found in her bin, were tested for traces of death cap mushrooms.
Death cap mushrooms
Death cap mushrooms are considered to perhaps be the deadliest of all mushrooms to humans, according to Britannica. The fungus is responsible for most cases of mushroom poisoning worldwide, of which some are fatal, the encyclopaedia has said.The cap ranges in colour from greenish yellow to brown, tan, or rarely white, and measures about 4-16cm (about 1.5-6in) in diameter.Patterson claimed she purchased some of the mushrooms dried from an Asian grocery in Melbourne, but couldn't remember which suburb. When she was questioned about the brand, and asked for transaction records, she said the mushrooms were in plain packaging and added that she must have paid in cash.However, detectives had discovered death cap mushrooms had been seen in two towns close to Morwell, where Patterson lived, before the meal. Concerned locals had been posting images and locations of the mushrooms on the online plant database iNaturalist.
Erin Patterson's search history showed that she had used the iNaturalist website to view death cap mushroom sightings at least once before.Her mobile phone location data appeared to show her travelling to both places and buying a food dehydrator on the way home.Forensic experts were also able to recover images on her mobile showing what looked like death cap mushrooms on weighing scales.
Even a small piece of a death cap mushroom can be deadly and its toxins cannot be destroyed by cooking, freezing, or drying.
The dehydrator
Traces of poisonous mushrooms were found in a food dehydrator that Erin Patterson disposed of in a local dump the day after she was discharged from hospital. Patterson told police she'd never owned such an appliance, despite an instruction manual being found in her kitchen drawer and posts in a true crime Facebook group where she boasted about using it.
Among the exhibits released by the judge, are stills of Patterson dumping a food dehydrator at her local tip days after the beef Wellington lunch.As a reminder, she took herself to the hospital two days after the lunch, saying she felt ill. She initially refused pleas from staff for her and her children, who she claimed had eaten the leftovers, to be admitted for treatment. None of their tests showed traces of death cap mushroom poisoning.
Patterson took the dehydrator to an E-waste site.
The dehydrator was recovered by the police and forensic examination of the appliance found her fingertips and traces of the death cap mushrooms.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BreakingNews.ie
27 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Teen who murdered man in front of shoppers and children is jailed
A teenager who stabbed a man to death on a sunny afternoon in front of shoppers and children using a knife he had bought for self-protection has been jailed for 13 years. Passing sentence, Mr Justice Paul McDermott said the teen, who can't be named because he was a minor when he first came before the courts, murdered Aaron Keating (43) as an "angry aggressive youth acting in a drug rage". Advertisement Although he has pleaded guilty to murder, the youth is not subject to a mandatory life sentence due to his age at the time of the offence. Mr Justice McDermott said he had to take into account the defendant's age, lack of maturity and the need to rehabilitate young offenders. Therefore he sentenced the defendant to 15 years with the final two years suspended for two years on a number of conditions. The now 19-year-old was one month short of his 18th birthday when he murdered Mr Keating on June 13th, 2023 at Main Street, Ongar, Dublin 15. Mr Justice McDermott said it had been a sunny Tuesday afternoon when the defendant and a group of youths were hanging around Main St smoking cannabis. Mr Keating, who had mental health difficulties all his life, was a frequent visitor to the area and was known to all the youths. Advertisement CCTV footage CCTV footage showed an altercation between Mr Keating and the defendant which prompted the youth to run to a nearby stairwell where he had stashed a knife for self-protection. He returned within 90 seconds of the first altercation and pursued Mr Keating across the road despite one of his friends telling him to stop. The defendant attempted to stab Mr Keating but missed before he "made another lunge", the judge said, causing the fatal wound to the abdomen. A pathologist found the cause of death to be haemorrhage and shock due to the single stab wound. Mr Justice McDermott noted that the defendant attacked his victim openly, in a public place, presenting a "terrifying spectacle" to shoppers, including women and children. Advertisement The defendant fled the scene, disposed of the knife and made no attempt to assist the dying man, the judge said. Mr Keating was loved by his family, the judge said, and is deeply missed. His life was "needlessly and violently taken", he said. The judge said that the defendant had done well in primary school but by the age of 12, he began regularly using drugs. He had seen numerous doctors and therapists over the years but continued to abuse drugs. He said drug use had "a dominating role" in the murder and in causing a disintegration in the youth's education. Drug rehabilitation, he said, will be a factor in efforts to prevent the teenager reoffending. The defendant is currently considered at a high risk of reoffending if he were returned to a community setting within 12 months. Mr Justice McDermott set a headline sentence of 25 years but reduced that to 21 to account for the defendant's age. He further reduced the sentence to 15 years after considering mitigating factors including the teenager's guilty plea and his "early and consistent expression of remorse, which appears to be genuine and comprehensive". Advertisement When sentencing children, the Supreme Court has found that it is preferable to suspend part of the sentence to encourage rehabilitation. Mr Justice McDermott suspended the final two years on condition that the defendant keep the peace for two years after release, address his addiction needs with the probation services and accept any treatment recommended. He must also participate in a drug rehabilitation programme and any mental health services recommended by the probation services. Sentencing At a sentencing hearing last week, Det Gda Jenny Greene told prosecution senior counsel James Dwyer that the defendant was hanging around Ongar smoking cannabis with a group of teenagers from about 3pm that afternoon. He had a number of interactions with Mr Keating. At about 6pm, "something triggered a reaction" in Mr Keating, who pushed the youth up against a window. Advertisement The other youths who had been with the defendant encouraged Mr Keating to leave the area. He crossed the street but about 90 seconds after the previous interaction, the defendant appeared wearing his t-shirt over his head and face and carrying a knife. He ran towards Mr Keating and made "a number of attempts to stab him", inflicting one stab wound to the abdomen, Det Gda Greene said. Mr Keating collapsed within seconds and died from the injury. The defendant went to a garda station the following morning with his mother and admitted to what he had done. In subsequent interviews, he said he had been smoking cannabis and taking mushrooms when Mr Keating asked him for a joint. He said he laughed, refused to give him a joint and called Mr Keating a junkie. Ireland Pensioner blackmailed woman with sex pics recovere... Read More He claimed the deceased attacked him so he ran to get the knife so he could "get him before he gets me". He said he didn't want Mr Keating to die but wanted to scare him. "He was egging me on," he said. "I don't know what he said but he triggered me." The defendant entered his plea of guilty to murder following a Supreme Court ruling last year that, despite now reaching adulthood, he will not face a mandatory life sentence because he was a child when he committed the offence. The teen previously sought to halt the proceedings against him because, having aged out while awaiting trial, he faced a mandatory life sentence if convicted of murder. However, following a recent Supreme Court ruling, judges now have discretion when sentencing a person who committed murder while a child, regardless of what age they are when they come before the courts.
BBC News
41 minutes ago
- BBC News
Brantham murder accused is 'oddball' but no killer, defence says
A man accused of murdering a mother-of-six while she was walking her dog is an "oddball" but not a killer, according to his defence Barclay, 56, of no fixed address, is charged with the murder of Anita Rose, 57, who was attacked on 24 July 2024 in Brantham, Suffolk before dying four days Barclay, who denies killing the grandmother, has chosen not to offer any evidence or to be cross-examined during the course of the trial at Ipswich Crown his closing speech, Simon Spence KC, who is representing Mr Barclay, told the jury they "can't find him guilty" unless they are certain he was the killer. "There is no evidence at all of any contact between Roy Barclay and Anita Rose's body… contact there must have been if he was the killer," he said."He's innocent unless or until you, the jury, say otherwise." Ms Rose had been walking her dog Bruce along fields next to the railway line, sewage works and Stour estuary in Brantham early in the morning when she was grandmother of 13, who was found unconscious and with serious injuries, was taken to Addenbrooke's Hospital, in Cambridge, where she later prosecution said Mr Barclay murdered Ms Rose by stamping on her multiple times while wearing walking boots before fleeing the is claimed he took Ms Rose's pink jacket, mobile phone and a key as "trophies of the killing".But his defence barrister, Mr Spence, argued the defendant, who was homeless, may have found the possessions while "scavenging"."If he was the killer obviously the thing to do is to get rid of them," he said."Would you keep those items or would you dispose of them as quickly as you could?"And if he was the killer, [why did he keep his boots]? Why not just get rid of them? Chuck them in the river?" He was also caught on CCTV in Brantham at the time of the assault but Mr Spence said that "being in the vicinity of a crime means nothing"."When you stand back objectively at the CCTV which puts Barclay on the 24 July in the Brantham area, what does it prove? We submit - nothing at all," he added."Is this of real significance, that he was in Brantham? It's one of the places he kept his clothing and possessions, a frequent visitor. [So], I suggest not." Mr Spence said the absence of DNA weakened the prosecution's case and he was keen to stress to the jury that there was no sexual also told the jury Mr Barclay was autistic, was unable to communicate verbally, and that his silence did not prove any guilt."Each strand there is doubt, it creates cumulative doubt, which you can't overlook," Mr Spence told the trial continues. Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Six arrests made over 'execution-style' killing in Kings Langley
Detectives investigating an "execution-style killing" have made six further arrests in connection to the Jatta was found critically injured by police in Railway Terrace, Kings Langley, Hertfordshire, at about 00:33 BST on 17 30-year-old father from Nottingham died shortly afterwards from gunshot injuries. Hertfordshire Police said six people were arrested on suspicion of murder on Friday, following seven arrests made since October. Nobody has been charged in connection with the death of Mr Jatta, who officers believed had arranged to meet people in a white Volkswagen Golf."For this reason, we believe the suspects and the victim knew each other and this was an organised shooting," said Det Insp Adam Bridges in car was thought to have "fled the scene at speed" along Railway Terrace and Primrose Hill, before it was discovered on fire in Furtherfield, Abbots Langley - about 2.8 miles (4.5km) away, at about 00:45. Hertfordshire Police said its latest arrests were:Two 20-year-old men from WatfordA 19-year-old man from WatfordAn 18-year-old man from WatfordA 22-year-old man from WatfordA 36-year-old man from LondonDetectives have appealed for anyone who saw the VW Golf in the north Watford area between 7-17 September to get in had a square yellow sticker in the top corner on the driver's side of the windscreen and a blue and white sticker in the top corner on the passenger side of the Insp Bridges, who is leading the investigation, said: "We are actively exploring new lines of inquiry into Mustapha's [death]."Those arrested are on police bail with strict conditions, as inquiries continue into this very active investigation."Crimestoppers has offered a £20,000 reward for information that leads to the conviction of anyone involved in Mr Jatta's death. Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
