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Court blocks sale of Erin Patterson's Leongatha mushroom murder home

Court blocks sale of Erin Patterson's Leongatha mushroom murder home

The Australian2 days ago
Convicted triple-murderer Erin Patterson won't be able to sell the house where she served her deadly beef Wellington lunch following a court order.
The family home in Gibson St, Leongatha in country Victoria is now subject to a Supreme Court restraining order on its sale in case her victims' families make a compensation claim.
Victims can apply for a compensation or restitution order under the Sentencing Act 1991.
The prosecution applied for a restraining order on Patterson's $1m home on a hectare block on July 16 under confiscation legislation, the Herald Sun reported.
Erin Patterson won't be able to sell her home in Leongatha after a court order revealed on Wednesday. Picture: Brendan Beckett
Erin Patterson was convicted of the murder of her in-laws Don and Gail Patterson (top) and Heather Wilkinson and the attempted murder of Ian Wilkinson (bottom). Picture: Supplied.
Patterson's parents-in-law, Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson died from multiple organ failure linked to mushroom poisoning in the week following the lunch on July 29, 2023.
Heather's husband, Ian Wilkinson, was the only lunch guest to survive after he too became seriously ill after the meal.
Prosecutors argued the only reasonable explanation for what happened is Patterson knowingly seeking out death cap mushrooms and including them in the beef Wellington, intending to kill her or seriously injure her guests.
Her defence had argued Patterson accidentally included the deadly mushrooms and acted poorly out of panic she would be wrongly blamed.
The keenly watched 10 week trial ended on July 7 when after seven days of deliberations, the jury unanimously found Patterson guilty of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
Patterson, 50, is yet to be sentenced.
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