AS WELL as laying three murder charges against Erin Patterson, 49, of Leongatha, police have also charged Ms Patterson with attempting to murder her husband Simon, the father of her two children.
They claim Ms Paterson tried to poison her husband on three separate historic occasions, in November 2021, in May 2022 and September 2022, while also charging her with intending to murder Mr Patterson at the ill-fated family lunch on Saturday, July 29 this year.
Simon Patterson was allegedly invited to attend but declined.
He has so far declined to speak about the fatal lunch served up by his ex-wife in July, but last year revealed on social media that he had nearly died from a mysterious gut illness that left him in a coma.
“I collapsed at home, then was in an induced coma for 16 days through which I had three emergency operations mainly on my small intestine, plus an additional planned operation,” he wrote on social media in May 2022, In a message to basketball friends who had wished him well.
“My family were asked to come and say goodbye to me twice, as I was not expected to live.”
He was in intensive care for 21 days before starting to recover.
“I’ve been feeling great for many days. I feel no pain, and it all seems to have no impact on my personality, character, or anything else much,” the post read.
The full list of eight charges laid against Ms Patterson are as follows:
“To the accused Erin Trudy Patterson of Leongatha
1. The accused at Heidelberg on 04/08/2023 did murder Heather Wilkinson
2. The accused at Heidelberg on 04/08/2023 did murder Gail Patterson
3. The accused at Heidelberg on 05/08/2023 did murder Donald Patterson
4. The accused at Leongatha on 29/07/2023 did attempt to commit an indictable offence namely the murder of Ian Wilkinson
5. The accused at Leongatha on 29/07/2023 did attempt to commit an indictable offence namely the murder of Simon Patterson
6. The accused in the State of Victoria between 16/11/2021 and 17/11/2021 did attempt to commit an indictable offence namely the murder of Simon Patterson.
7. The accused in the State of Victoria between 25/05/2022 and 27/05/2022 did attempt to commit an indictable offence namely the murder of Simon Patterson.
8. The accused in the State of Victoria on 26/09/2022 did attempt to commit an indictable offence namely the murder of Simon Patterson.
Ms Patterson attended the Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court on Friday, November 3 to face those charges but entered no plea and was remanded in custody until a committal hearing, listed for May 3 next year.
There was no bail application.
Erin Patterson has consistently maintained her innocence.
In a statement she presented to police, and released exclusively to the ABC in August, Ms Patterson said she was devastated about the deaths of her inlaws.
Quoted from the ABC:
"I am now wanting to clear up the record because I have become extremely stressed and overwhelmed by the deaths of my loved ones," Ms Patterson said.
"I am hoping this statement might help in some way. I believe if people understood the background more, they would not be so quick to rush to judgement.
"I am now devastated to think that these mushrooms may have contributed to the illness suffered by my loved ones. I really want to repeat that I had absolutely no reason to hurt these people whom I loved."
In the statement, Ms Patterson said advice she received immediately after the deaths was to give a "no comment" interview to police, which she said she now regretted.
"I now very much regret not answering some questions following this advice given the nightmare that this process has become," she said.
Ms Patterson said she found the police interview "terrifying and anxiety-provoking".
She said that on the day of the lunch, she prepared a meal of beef Wellington for herself and her four elderly guests.
Contrary to initial reports from police, who said Ms Patterson's children were present but did not eat the meal, Ms Patterson said the children had actually gone to the movies prior to lunch.
According to her statement, Ms Patterson served the meal and allowed the guests to choose their own plates. She then took the last plate and ate a serve of the beef Wellington herself.
Ms Patterson said the mushrooms were a mixture of button mushrooms purchased at a major supermarket chain, and dried mushrooms bought at an Asian grocery store in Melbourne months previously.
The Patterson children ate the leftovers from the lunch the following night.
However, Ms Patterson said the children do not like mushrooms, so she scraped them off the meal.
Ms Patterson said it had not been previously reported that she was also hospitalised after the lunch with bad stomach pains and diarrhoea, and was put on a saline drip and given a "liver protective drug".
