THE turbulent case of the poison mushroom cook Erin Patterson is set to take yet another turn as cops turn to her search history.
Patterson, 49, is reportedly set to be grilled over her internet usage and old Facebook posts in court as prosecutors look to bolster their evidence against the alleged triple murderer.
NinePolice have been going through poison mushroom cook Erin Patterson’s search history as the triple murder case takes another shocking twist[/caption]
APCops have been working on collecting data from Patterson’s social media accounts to use as part of the case[/caption]
ABC News: Anita LesterErin Patterson is set to be grilled over her search history and social media usage in court when her bombshell trial starts in May[/caption]
The mum-of-two faces three counts of murdering her in-laws and a total of five counts of attempted murder including on her ex-husband.
It has been alleged that Patterson planned to poison her partner and his family with a lethal mushroom laced beef wellington that tragically killed three.
Detectives are said to be very interested in delving into Patterson’s Facebook accounts, say the Herald Sun.
The paper claims the woman had a number of profiles online and constantly used different names to post and interact with others.
Specialist teams are now believed to be working alongside the cops in Australia to also reveal any suspicious or informative deleted searches from her devices.
She might be involved in conversations or narratives where she has talked about this stuff on online forums… it could be the tiniest thing
Police source
They hope this could lead to a quicker case in court as reports have already suggested the trial could last for some time with many unanswered questions left on the table.
A police source told the Herald Sun: “It’s not easy but it’s doable on most occasions.
“She might be involved in conversations or narratives where she has talked about this stuff on online forums… it could be the tiniest thing.”
The accused killer allegedly took to Facebook to declare she was “very good at details” before the fateful lunch.
As she also shunned the writing skills of her neighbours online, reported Daily Mail Australia.
Patterson and her ex-husband Simon ran a Korumburra newsletter together for years but leaked messages from Patterson shows her blasting readers.
She branded contributors to The Burra Flyer “illiterate motherf***ers” as she ranted to a friend.
Facebook messages also appear to show Patterson throwing a dig at her ex Simon when they were still together.
The post allegedly says: “My husband has no idea we have a cleaner come. I love it.”
“Now I don’t resent the fact that he never helps me with anything because I’m not doing the big jobs either… now all I have to resent him over are the nightly dishes.”
Patterson’s trial is set to get underway in May.
She has been held up in one of Australia’s most notorious women’s prisons since the charges were lobbied against her.
Patterson is believed to have been kept in a protective wing at the 600 capacity Victoria’s Dame Phyllis Frost Centre because of the notoriety of the case.
THE FUNGI SAGA
Four of the five counts of attempted murder relate to a 48-year-old Korumburra man – believed to be Erin’s ex-husband Simon Patterson.
He is said to have become ill on three occasions following meals in 2021 and 2022, seeing him placed into an induced coma and in ICU for 21 days.
In a social media post, he wrote: “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.
“My family were asked to come and say goodbye to me twice, as I was not expected to live.
“I was in intensive care for 21 days…”
Simon was supposed to go to the fateful family lunch on July 29, 2023, but sources claimed he thankfully cancelled at the last minute.
But tragically his parents Gail and Don Patterson, aunt Heather Wilkinson, and uncle Ian Wilkinson did eat at Erin’s house.
She served them a beef Wellington that allegedly contained death cap mushrooms.
Gail and Don, both 70, later lost their lives in hospital along with Gail’s sister Heather, 66.
Erin’s fourth alleged victim, Ian, miraculously survived but was left critically ill and spent two months in a hospital.
Doctors have claimed all four of their symptoms were consistent with poisoning by death cap mushrooms, which grow wild in the area.
The alleged murderer denies all wrongdoing and has always insisted she never meant to serve “my loved ones” the deadly mushrooms.
But last November, cops raided Patterson’s home and took several items using trained dogs, reported news.com.au.
Officers were witnessed hauling out bags of evidence, including tech such as hard drives and USB sticks.
After the home raids, a tradesman came forward to reveal he had seen a “death wall” inside Erin’s former home.
Red and blue markers were used to scrawl eerie drawings and messages over the wall of children’s tombstones – with one chilling warning reading: “You don’t [have] long to live”.
The same day, a neighbour of Patterson’s claimed she was an experienced forager, who regularly picked her own mushrooms in the local area.
FacebookFour of the five counts of attempted murder relate to ex-husband Simon Patterson[/caption]
The creepy ‘death wall’ found at Erin’s former home
NineErin’s former mother-in-law, Gail Patterson died of suspected death cap mushroom poisoning[/caption]
NineDon Patterson also tragically passed away[/caption]
Ian Wilkinson also ate the mushroom lunch but miraculously survivedNine