Erin Patterson arrested over meal that killed three

ABC NEWS (Australia)

A Victorian woman who served beef wellington at a family lunch which left three of her guests dead is being re-interviewed by police. Investigators have raided Erin Patterson’s home in the state's east more than three months after the lunch they suspect contained death cap mushrooms.

Transcript

00:00 Arrested and under escort, Erin Patterson makes her way into a police station ready

00:07 to face investigators. Earlier this morning, as the investigation entered its fourth month,

00:13 detectives raided the 49-year-old's home in Leangatha. She waited inside as police took

00:18 apart her car and combed through her shed, while outside, special technology detector

00:23 dogs, unknown from the federal police, were taken through the property. Looking for electronic

00:28 devices like phones, SIM cards and USB sticks. The mother of two was then taken to Wanthaggie

00:35 Police Station, where she was interviewed by the Homicide Squad.

00:39 Today's arrest is just the next step in what has been a complex and thorough investigation

00:44 by Homicide Squad detectives, and one that is not yet over.

00:49 That lunch has been under intense scrutiny. On the 29th of July, Erin Patterson invited

00:54 her in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, over for lunch, along with Gail's sister, Heather

01:00 Wilkinson, and her husband, Ian. On the menu was beef wellington, a pastry filled with

01:05 beef and a pate made of mushrooms. But by the next day, all four guests were admitted

01:10 to hospital with gastro-like symptoms. Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson died on the

01:15 4th of August, followed by Don Patterson the next day. Ian Wilkinson, the local pastor

01:21 at the Coram Barra Baptist Church, was released from hospital after more than seven weeks.

01:26 In a written statement to police, Erin Patterson said she bought the dried mushrooms at a supermarket

01:31 and an Asian grocery store months earlier. It was the first time her account was publicly

01:37 aired. I'm devastated. I love them. And I can't

01:42 believe that this has happened. This lethal lunch has thrust this tight-knit

01:45 community into the limelight and sparked widespread speculation, something investigators are warning

01:52 against. I cannot think of another investigation that

01:56 has generated this level of media and public interest, not only here in Victoria, but also

02:03 nationally. But local residents and loved ones of the

02:07 three people who've died just want answers.

02:09 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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