Daughter of woman accused of murdering three with poisonous mushrooms 'ate meal leftovers'

The daughter of an Australian woman who is accused of murdering three members of her estranged husband's family with deadly mushrooms says she ate leftovers of the meal the following day, a court has heard.

- Nino Bucci

Erin Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty to three charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder relating to the lunch she served to relatives of her estranged husband, Simon Patterson, at her house in Leongatha, Victoria, on 29 July 2023.

Patterson is accused of murdering Simon's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, his aunt Heather Wilkinson, and attempting to murder Ian Wilkinson, Simon's uncle and Heather's husband.

Her daughter's interview with police, which was played to the court, was from 16 August 2023.

In her interview the girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told police that Patterson said she was sick on the morning of 30 July 2023, the day after the lunch. Patterson said she had a sore stomach and diarrhoea and the girl had seen her go to the toilet about 10 times, she told police.

Later that night, Patterson served her two children and herself leftovers from the meal, her daughter said, including steak, mashed potato and green beans.

Asked by the officer to tell him everything she could remember about the lunch Patterson hosted, the girl said: "I wasn't there, so I don't know," and became emotional.