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RTHK
11 hours ago
- RTHK
Mushroom meal murderer tried to poison husband first
Mushroom meal murderer tried to poison husband first Erin Patterson and her murderous mushrooms form the main ingredients for a biting poster put up in Melbourne. Image via Reuters An Australian woman who murdered three of her in-laws with a meal of toxic mushrooms also allegedly tried to murder her husband using poisoned pasta, a chicken curry and a sandwich wrap, evidence showed on Friday after a judge allowed its disclosure. A jury found in July that Erin Patterson lured her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, to lunch at her home and poisoned them with servings of Beef Wellington that contained death cap mushrooms. They also found the 50-year-old guilty of the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson, Heather's husband, who survived the 2023 meal at Erin Patterson's home in Leongatha, a town of about 6,000 people some 135 kilometres southeast of Melbourne. Patterson was initially charged with three counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder in 2023, with the four additional counts relating to her estranged husband, Simon Patterson. Justice Christopher Beale previously ruled the charges should be split into two separate trials, before the prosecution dropped the attempted murder charges relating to Simon Patterson on the eve of the first trial. That meant details of the alleged attempts on her husband's life in 2021 and 2022 were never heard by the jury. "After the first time I got sick, I had the idea I got sick from Erin's food," Simon Patterson told a pre-trial hearing in Melbourne in October 2024. He eventually began keeping a spreadsheet of his illnesses that the court heard all happened after eating his estranged wife's cooking, including a penne bolognese, a chicken curry and a sandwich wrap. The alleged poisonings left him close to death, and he became so ill he was temporarily paralysed and had part of his bowel removed, the court heard at the time. Evidence from a computer seized from Patterson's home showing searches for other kinds of poisons was also excluded from the trial. Patterson maintained her innocence throughout the case that has gripped Australia, with her defence calling the deaths a "terrible accident". She pleaded not guilty to the counts of attempted murder against her husband. The court will next hear the case on August 25, the first of a two-day plea hearing where victim impact statements will be read. (Reuters)
RTHK
15 hours ago
- RTHK
US doubles bounty on 'largest narco-trafficker' Maduro
US doubles bounty on 'largest narco-trafficker' Maduro US Attorney General Pam Bondi described Maduro (left) as one of the "largest narco-traffickers in the world" and "a threat to national security". File photo: Reuters The United States has doubled its bounty on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro – who faces federal drug-trafficking charges – to US$50 million, a move Caracas described as "pathetic" and "ridiculous". Washington, which does not recognise Maduro's past two election victories, accuses the South American country's leader of leading a cocaine trafficking gang. "Today, the Department of Justice and State Department are announcing a historic US$50 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Nicolas Maduro," Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a video on social media. The previous bounty was set in January. "He is one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world and a threat to our national security." Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said Bondi's "pathetic" bounty was "the most ridiculous smokescreen we have ever seen". In 2020, during President Donald Trump's first term in office, Maduro and other high-ranking Venezuelan officials were indicted in federal court in New York on several charges including participating in a "narco-terrorism" conspiracy. The Justice Department accused Maduro of leading a cocaine trafficking gang called "The Cartel of the Suns" that shipped hundreds of tonnes of narcotics into the US over two decades, earning hundreds of millions of dollars. Investigators say the cartel worked hand in hand with the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, which the US has labelled a terrorist organisation. Bondi said Maduro also had worked with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and Mexico's Sinaloa cartel. The US Drug Enforcement Administration "has seized 30 tonnes of cocaine linked to Maduro and his associates, with nearly seven tonnes linked to Maduro himself", Bondi said. The US government has also seized more than US$700 million in Maduro-linked assets, including two Venezuelan government aircraft, since September, according to Bondi. The 62-year-old Maduro, a former bus driver and trade unionist, faces up to life in prison if he can be tried and is convicted. In June, Venezuela's former intelligence chief Hugo Armando Carvajal pleaded guilty to US drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges. The Miami Herald, citing sources familiar with the case, said Carvajal had offered to provide US authorities with documents and testimony implicating Maduro. (AFP)
The Standard
a day ago
- The Standard
South Korea special prosecutor seeks detention warrant for ex-first lady
South Korea's former first lady Kim Keon Hee arrives at the special prosecutor's office in Seoul, South Korea, August 6, 2025. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
