Latest news with #HomicideSquad
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
The moment Erin Patterson blatantly lied to cops is revealed in video shown to mushroom murder trial jury
Erin Patterson 's recorded interview with police following the deadly beef Wellington lunch has been aired in open court for the very first time. Wearing a grey jumper and seated across the table from Homicide Squad Senior Constable Stephen Eppingstall, Patterson was asked if she owned a dehydrator or knew anything about them. 'No,' was the response. It was a lie the jury has previously heard Patterson now admits to. On Tuesday, the jury was shown photographs of a manual for a Sunbeam food dehydrator found in a drawer in Patterson's Leongatha home. 'I've got manuals of lots of stuff I've collected over the years,' Patterson told the detective on August 5 2023 following the search of her home. 'I just keep them all.' On the opening day of the trial, Patterson's barrister Colin Mandy, SC told the jury Patterson had lied about having cancer and did dump a dehydrator later found to have traces of death cap mushrooms. 'She panicked because she was overwhelmed because there were four people that had become so ill because of the food she served them,' he said. Asked by Senior Constable Eppingstall - the last witness to be called by the prosecution - if she had ever dehydrated mushrooms before, Patterson shook her head in denial. Pressed for information, the detective asked if Patterson had ever foraged for mushrooms. 'Never,' she responded. Patterson had claimed she had bought the dried mushrooms used in her beef Wellingtons from an Asian grocer in Melbourne's south-east. Under questioning, Patterson mentioned her 'co-operation' with the hunt to find that Asian grocer. 'I'm sure you understand too that I've never been in a situation like this before, and I've been very, very helpful with the health department through the week, because I wanted to help that side of things as much as possible, because I do want to know what happened,' she said. 'I've given them as much information as they've asked for, and offered up all the food and all the information about where the food came from the house.' The jury heard Patterson was questioned about the reason for the lunch and why she had invited her in-laws over. 'Because I've got no other family,' she said. 'I want to maintain those relationships in spite of what's happening with Simon, I love them a lot.' The jury has previously heard Patterson's relationship with her estranged husband had become frosty towards the end of 2022. Patterson, 50, is accused of killing her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, and Gail's sister, Heather Wilkinson, with death cap mushrooms served in the pastry dish during a lunch at her Leongatha home on July 29, 2023. Pastor Ian Wilkinson was the only one to survive the lunch, with an attempted murder charge related to his alleged poisoning also in play. Patterson told Senior Constable Eppingstall that Don and Gail had always been good to her. 'They always said to me that they would support me with love and emotional support even though Simon and I were separated,' she said. 'They're the only family I've got.' Patterson told the detective she had tried to maintain her relationship with Simon's parents for the good of her children despite their separation. 'Nothing that's ever happened between us, nothing he's ever done to me, will change the fact that they're good decent people that have never done anything wrong by me, ever,' she said. Before the 20 minute record of interview was played, the jury heard that the police tasked with raiding Patterson's home had seized just one plate from her home. That plate was retrieved from the kitchen fridge and contained nothing more than fruit. In opening the trial, Crown prosecutor Dr Nanette Rogers told the jury that Patterson had invited everyone over to ask them how she ought to tell her children she had ovarian cancer. Prosecutors said that Patterson served beef Wellington - and ate from a different plate to the others, distinguishing her meal from those alleged to have been poisoned. There were four large grey dinner plates on the table, while Patterson ate from a smaller, tan orange dish, according to Pastor Ian Wilkinson, who became sick but survived. Homicide Squad Detective Sergeant Luke Farrell told the jury that while detectives were interested in Patterson's plates, they had not taken photos of them all after executing a search warrant on August 5, 2023. Nor had they measured any of the various plates found inside her Leongatha property. Instead the jury was taken to screen grabs of a video a detective took of Patterson's kitchen. The jury observed images that showed several plates which were red on top and black on the bottom in addition to a white plate with some colour on it. Another image showed a stack of four dark-coloured plates and a single white plate with stripes of blue, black and orange. The pastor gave evidence to the jury on May 6, describing in detail what happened at the lunch. Mr Wilkinson recalled the meal consisted of mash potato, green beans and beef wellington. 'I could see them (the plates) between Heather and Gail, there were four large grey plates, one smaller plate - a different colour, an orangy-tan color,' he insisted. 'Gail picked up two of the grey plates and took them to the table, Heather picked up two of the grey plates and took them to the table, Erin picked up the odd plate and put it at her place at the table.' Detective Senior Constable Eppingstall, who spearheaded the investigation into Patterson, later told the jury police had not located any grey plates as described by Mr Wilkinson during their search of the house. Sgt Farrell had been conducting the search on Patterson's home when police allege she factory reset her mobile phone. The jury heard Patterson had been allowed to hang onto her phone throughout the search and spent up to 20 minutes alone with it in a sealed room. On Tuesday, the jury watched video of the moment Sgt Farrell asked Patterson for her phone while they were both seated at her dining table. 'I asked for it and she gave it to me,' Sgt Farrell told the jury. 'I asked her if there was a pin code to open the phone and she provided (two codes) she thought it might've been, but I didn't require a code to access the phone.' The phone was later erased remotely while sitting in a secure locker within the Homicide Squad's headquarters. The jury was shown several images of items seized from Patterson's home. These items included an instruction manual for a Sunbeam dehydrator, a set of digital scales and a glass bowl. Sgt Farrell said a RecipeTin Eats cookbook which contained a recipe for beef Wellington was also photographed and seized. The investigator said he opened the book and found a recipe for beef Wellington in a section of 'spattered pages'. Police also seized a jug of gravy and a fruit platter from the fridge. Sgt Farrell said police discovered a Cooler Master personal computer in Patterson's son's room, which was later found to have stored internet searches on death cap mushrooms. Patterson had been unaware anyone had died from eating her lunch at the time the search warrant was executed. Sgt Farrell said that before he commenced the search, he spoke to Patterson and told her police had come to search her home in connection to the 'death of two people'. 'Who died?,' Patterson asked. Earlier, the jury was taken through the public health scramble to locate the dried mushrooms Patterson had told health officials she used to make the beef Wellington. Health official Sally Ann Atkinson told the jury Patterson claimed the mushrooms she purchased came in a clear bag that carried a white label without any kind of commercial packaging. While a council investigator found one shop in Oakleigh, south-east of Melbourne, that contained bagged mushrooms similar to what Patterson described, she said health officials never found any traces of death cap mushrooms being sold. 'It's highly unlikely the commercial mushroom supply chain was contaminated with amanita (poisons),' Ms Atkinson said. She further said there were no 'issues' found with the other foods served in Patterson's lunch and the risk to the public was deemed 'low'. The officer also noted 'no food recalls were deemed warranted'. The trial continues.
New York Post
5 days ago
- New York Post
LI cops probing whether corpse found in backyard pool is that of fugitive murder suspect who fatally stabbed father months earlier
A Long Island homeowner's summer kick-off took a horrifying turn Sunday evening after lifting the pool cover in their East Shoreham backyard — discovering a body that police are reportedly investigating as possibly being fugitive murder suspect Matthew Zoll. Sources said Suffolk County police are now looking to confirm the body as the suspected 23-year-old killer and investigate the cause of death, according to Newsday. Officials wouldn't confirm whether this is their leading theory, but said the Homicide Squad is actively investigating and that the Medical Examiner's office is performing an autopsy to determine the cause of death and confirm the victim's identity. Advertisement 5 Zoll allegedly stabbed his father Joseph Zoll (left) to death in November. Facebook/Joe Zoll 5 The body was found by a homeowner in the backyard of their East Shoreham house. Google Maps 'We can't speculate any specific identity,' Suffolk cops told The Post. Advertisement Zoll, who is reportedly schizophrenic, is the main suspect of a November murder where he allegedly stabbed his 61-year-old dad, postal worker Joseph Zoll, to death inside their home in Rocky Point. 5 Police are investigating whether a body found in a Long Island pool belongs to fugitive murder suspect Matthew Zoll. Suffolk County Police Department He then frantically fled the home, crashing his car on the William Floyd Parkway about 10 minutes after the alleged killing — leaving the totaled car and escaping on foot. US Marshals spent several days scouring the wooded areas off the parkway, including the 1,600-acre Brookhaven State Park, in an intense search for Zoll following the deadly crash — but ultimately came up short. Advertisement 5 Police suspect Zoll might've tried to hide underneath the winter pool cover before potentially drowning or dying of hypothermia. Google Earth 5 Zoll, who is reportedly schizophrenic, fled his home after the alleged murder. Suffolk County Police Department The backyard where the body was found borders a wooded lot that runs behind four homes and leads straight to William Floyd Parkway. Sources claim cops now believe Zoll may have traveled about a half-a-mile to the backyard, where he could've tried hiding underneath the winter pool cover before dying of various causes including drowning, hypothermia, suffocation, and more, Newsday said.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Yahoo
Murder charge laid after body found in granny flat
A man has been charged with murder after the body of an older man was found in a suburban granny flat. Investigators are still trying to work out the relationship between the pair. Emergency services were called to a home in western Sydney late on Friday after receiving concerned reports about a resident's welfare. Local police arrived to the Homebush West property about 11.30pm to find the body of the 65-year-old man in an on-site granny flat. He has not yet been formally identified. Another man, 31, was arrested at the scene and taken to Auburn police station. By late Wednesday afternoon he was charged with murder. He was refused bail and is set to appear at Parramatta Local Court on Monday. On Saturday, the house remained cordoned off with police tape and forensic officers could be seen coming and going from the property. Detectives from the NSW Homicide Squad are helping local officers with the investigation. A knife was found but the cause of death has not yet been determined. The two men were not related but police believe they knew each other. NSW Police Superintendent Robert Toynton said investigators were seeking more information about the nature of the relationship between the pair. "We have confirmed they know each other, but how they actually know each other will definitely be a line of inquiry that detectives are looking at today," he said. Police were not pursuing other people of interest, Supt Toynton said. "I want to reassure the community that this is an isolated, contained incident."
Otago Daily Times
05-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Grandmother arrested after two young boys found dead
Two young boys have been found dead at a home in a small Australian town, and police have arrested a woman believed to be their grandmother. Officers visited the property at Coonabarabran, in New South Wales' central west, at 2pm on Monday, following reports of a concern for their welfare. The boys, aged six and seven, were found dead. A 66-year-old woman, who police said was known to the children, was arrested at the property. The woman, reportedly the boys' grandmother, was taken to hospital for further assessment where she remains under police guard. The deaths are being investigated under Strike Force Darnum, assisted by detectives from State Crime Command's Homicide Squad. Premier Chris Minns described the discovery of the boys' bodies as heartbreaking. "What has occurred is terrible and as a state we share in the community of Coonabarabran's grief at the loss of two young boys who had their entire futures ahead of them," he said. "I can not begin to imagine the heartbreak their loved ones are currently feeling, including their family, friends, and teachers."
Daily Mail
04-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Jaw-dropping moment police boss defends officers who bungled the initial stages of Audrey Griffin's murder investigation - as the teenage victim's parents reveal how they were forced to do the detective work
The top cop in NSW has defended detectives after Audrey Griffin's mother revealed she pleaded with them to make her daughter's murder a priority in the days after her body was found in a NSW creek. The 19-year-old was found dead at Erina Creek on the Central Coast on March 22 following a night out celebrating with friends at Gosford Hotel. An initial autopsy indicated the talented athlete had drowned. The report found no evidence of trauma or sexual assault, so detectives deemed the death misadventure. But Audrey's parents Kathleen Kirby and Trevor Griffith pushed for further investigations. Ms Kirby begged to be shown CCTV from the area, and it was only when they were then going through the footage did they notice a man who appeared to be following Audrey as she walked home from the hotel. A CCTV image was then released more than three weeks after Audrey's body had been found, prompting a woman to contact police and tell them the man looked like her ex-husband who had threatened her on the night Audrey died. Adrian Noel Torrens, 53, was then arrested and charged with murder following police catching him confessing to the murder while under surveillance. Days later he took his own life in Silverwater jail. Commissioner Karen Webb said on 60 Minutes on Sunday night that initial confusion over the cause of the 19-year-old's death was because there was so little evidence. She acknowledged police had mistakenly ruled Ms Griffin's death as 'misadventure' before her mother pleaded with officers to review security footage. 'That was based on the medical advice,' Ms Webb said. Commisioner Webb claimed that all that police had to go on was the report from the postmortem. '[It] didn't suggest any foul play. There's no evidence that she was strangled, there's no evidence that she was sexually assaulted and there's no evidence of trauma. 'So they really didn't have a lot to go on other than a postmortem that said misadventure.' She claimed officers had a 'cop instinct' and doggedly kept pursuing the case despite no details getting released to the media and Ms Kirby having to go into the station and push for the CCTV to be reviewed. The state's Homicide Squad detectives also remained sidelined from the case for a number of weeks, despite consultation from local detectives. Asked whether the case could have been better handled, Ms Webb said: 'Could this be better, more perfect? Yes. 'But, did we catch a killer? Yes.' Officers only identified Torrens after circulating a CCTV image of him via the media. Ms Webb conceded officers had trawled the CCTV vision from Gosford on the night of March 22 only after Audrey's mother pleaded with local police to have a look at it herself. Ms Kirby also said a friend of hers had spotted a suspicious man poking around the spot where Audrey was found at Erina Creek five days after she died, well before police reviewed the CCTV. 'A girlfriend of mine was driving to work at 5 o'clock in the morning, heading towards Sydney at the entrance road and sees a man at 5 a.m. in the morning with a red singlet and white shorts and a white stick poking around,' she said. The description was a match for what Torrens had been wearing on the night of Audrey's death. She added that she also noticed mud underneath Audrey's fingernails when identifying her, which further fueled her belief it was not misadventure. 'Well, they were going back through the CCTV [because] the mum obviously wanted us to do as much as we can,' Ms Webb said. She said Torrens' ex-partner's call identifying him as the man in the video was 'gold' for detectives. Ex-partner Michelle told the program she would have called police sooner about the threats mae against her if she had more faith in their ability to respond. It previously took police months to find him after he breached an AVO for him only to then be let out by the courts on a Community Corrections Order. 'We wouldn't be in this position, I wouldn't be having this conversation with you, Audrey wouldn't be dead if he had have been held in custody,' Commissioner Webb said. 'He should have been locked up. A Community Corrections Order for someone who has a violent history is no answer.' She argued 'soft' sentences should be reviewed. 'I can say as the police commissioner, I'm certainly frustrated because a get out of jail free card is no the answer for people like Torrens,' Ms Webb said. When police brought Torrens into custody, they called Kathleen and Trevor into the station. 'That moment where police tell you that they've arrested a man over your daughter's death, it was like she died again,' Mr Griffith said. 'So I said, "has he said that he's done anything to Audrey, and they said we haven't been able to speak to him yet because he's sleeping. But we have enough evidence",' Ms Kirby said. Both Mr Griffin and Ms Kirby said they had wanted more from the justice system. They couldn't believe Torrens – who has an extensive criminal history including theft, fraud, intimidation, drugs and AVO offences – had been in the community on a CCO. 'It's outrageous. It's outrageous that he can walk the streets after doing so many offences over the years,' Mr Kirby said. 'Why was he out? Why was he allowed out?' Ms Kirby asked. 'The government are too weak. And the justice system. It's as if they're breeding monsters,' Mr Griffin said.
