Australia - 3 dead after eating wild mushrooms, Leongatha, Victoria, Aug 2023 #14 *Arrest*

[MrJ]

Pretty good overview of this week's evidence.

Wow, missed this bit, BBM, in the evidence:

Ms Patterson told the court her son was mistaken when he told police he had seen her drinking coffee in the kitchen on Sunday morning. Instead, she said, it was something like a lemon and ginger tea.

In a conversation with her husband on Monday, Ms Patterson — who was in Leongatha Hospital being treated for suspected death cap mushroom poisoning — suggested she could make the trip to pick up her children and bring them to hospital.

The court heard Mr Patterson, whose parents were by this stage seriously unwell, responded: "I'm glad that you feel healthy enough to make that drive to pick up the kids."

'That's not true': Erin Patterson says deadly lunch was not a murder plot

For more than a week, accused triple-murderer Erin Patterson protested her innocence from the witness box in her Supreme Court murder trial.

www.abc.net.au

 

[katydid23]

Pretty good overview of this week's evidence.

Wow, missed this bit, BBM, in the evidence:

Ms Patterson told the court her son was mistaken when he told police he had seen her drinking coffee in the kitchen on Sunday morning. Instead, she said, it was something like a lemon and ginger tea.

In a conversation with her husband on Monday, Ms Patterson — who was in Leongatha Hospital being treated for suspected death cap mushroom poisoning — suggested she could make the trip to pick up her children and bring them to hospital.

The court heard Mr Patterson, whose parents were by this stage seriously unwell, responded: "I'm glad that you feel healthy enough to make that drive to pick up the kids."

'That's not true': Erin Patterson says deadly lunch was not a murder plot

For more than a week, accused triple-murderer Erin Patterson protested her innocence from the witness box in her Supreme Court murder trial.

www.abc.net.au

Did you hear Erin's comments on the stand, when Dr Rogers mentioned this conversation with Simon?

Erin said 'she was put off' by Simon's tone of voice---he was saying it very sarcastically.

 

[MrJ]

Did you hear Erin's comments on the stand, when Dr Rogers mentioned this conversation with Simon?

Erin said 'she was put off' by Simon's tone of voice---he was saying it very sarcastically.

OK yes I do remember this part. Isn't it interesting how she can remember tiny details like that!

 

[jesse]

Pattersons says she had five twin packs of beef eye fillets and put two in the freezer.

She says she decided to use the six fillets and use each one for a beef wellington as she had the ingredients.

If this were true, then she fed her kids and herself the leftover meat from 1 and 1/2 beef wellingtons the next night. One of them a teenaged boy? Nah.

 

[jesse]

Sooooooooooooo she admits there was EXTRA STEAKS.

We knew that, though, right? Police had the receipts. We knew all the trips she made that week and what she bought.

 

[Shortfusepsb]

As smart as EP may be, she doesn't seem to have a good understanding of how a digital footprint can track one's activities.

Hypothetically speaking, if she was using the extra mushrooms for practice, she should have just paid in cash with no rewards card. Similarly, she could have used private mode and/or a VPN to hide any internet activities. And also left her phone turned off when mushroom hunting.


Edit - Honestly, it's quite disappointing that a true crime fan would miss this. I hope if any of you are planning a "perfect crime" you will do better.

This doesn't work.
Incognito mode and VPNs don’t make you invisible.
Even when browsers claim to clear caches, forensic tools can still retrieve residual data from device partitions. VPNs may mask IP addresses from websites, but they don’t stop local device logs, DNS leaks, or metadata collection. Investigators don't just look at your browsing history. They pull the raw data sitting in the guts of your device.

Second, turning off the phone doesn’t cut it.
If you're serious, the phone stays home, and it should stay turned on.
A phone that’s powered off or suddenly drops offline can still raise red flags if it’s normally active. A phone left at home in its usual place, doing its usual background updates, looks normal. Anything else is suspicious.
Even powered down, some devices still ping towers when restarted, or have residual network logs recoverable from system memory.
Your phones location, active and turned on, is a better alibi than a phone turned off. Who goes out and doesn't take their phone these days? You are likely where your phone is.

Now, transport. It’s not just about avoiding license plate recognition. It’s about making sure your car doesn’t become your digital tracking device. That means:

• No modern infotainment systems. Bluetooth logs, GPS breadcrumb trails, and USB connections all record data.
• No E-tags or toll roads. Gantries silently scan you even if you don't pay.
• No Fitbit or smartwatches. Background GPS and health data can sync to the cloud.
• No Myki, Opal, or tap-on public transport cards.
• Avoid all known VicRoads camera infrastructure including intersections, freeway exits, and metro ring roads.
• Do not pass industrial zones, service stations, or retail strips with CCTV.
• Don’t walk past Ring or Arlo doorbells. They're everywhere.

We are not in Kansas anymore, Toto.

 

[ch_13]

This doesn't work.
Incognito mode and VPNs don’t make you invisible.
Even when browsers claim to clear caches, forensic tools can still retrieve residual data from device partitions. VPNs may mask IP addresses from websites, but they don’t stop local device logs, DNS leaks, or metadata collection. Investigators don't just look at your browsing history. They pull the raw data sitting in the guts of your device.

Second, turning off the phone doesn’t cut it.
If you're serious, the phone stays home, and it should stay turned on.
A phone that’s powered off or suddenly drops offline can still raise red flags if it’s normally active. A phone left at home in its usual place, doing its usual background updates, looks normal. Anything else is suspicious.
Even powered down, some devices still ping towers when restarted, or have residual network logs recoverable from system memory.
Your phones location, active and turned on, is a better alibi than a phone turned off. Who goes out and doesn't take their phone these days? You are likely where your phone is.

Now, transport. It’s not just about avoiding license plate recognition. It’s about making sure your car doesn’t become your digital tracking device. That means:

• No modern infotainment systems. Bluetooth logs, GPS breadcrumb trails, and USB connections all record data.
• No E-tags or toll roads. Gantries silently scan you even if you don't pay.
• No Fitbit or smartwatches. Background GPS and health data can sync to the cloud.
• No Myki, Opal, or tap-on public transport cards.
• Avoid all known VicRoads camera infrastructure including intersections, freeway exits, and metro ring roads.
• Do not pass industrial zones, service stations, or retail strips with CCTV.
• Don’t walk past Ring or Arlo doorbells. They're everywhere.

We are not in Kansas anymore, Toto.

Well, there go my plans for the perfect crime.

 

[Lisa4]

all the prosecution would really have is the iNaturalist searches and her allegedly visiting the death cap locations

Also that she experienced no serious symptoms but the others died.

 

[jesse]

Correct, and frankly I agree with that approach and also the prohibition on cameras. The circus atmosphere created by some US cases makes a mockery of the system, IMO.

I actually prefer the transparency in the US system.

 

[JBowie]

I actually prefer the transparency in the US system.

Our system is transparent: the public and media can and do attend hearings unless they are closed such as in cases where children are involved.

 

[Cliff Hardy]

This doesn't work.
Incognito mode and VPNs don’t make you invisible.
Even when browsers claim to clear caches, forensic tools can still retrieve residual data from device partitions. VPNs may mask IP addresses from websites, but they don’t stop local device logs, DNS leaks, or metadata collection. Investigators don't just look at your browsing history. They pull the raw data sitting in the guts of your device.

Second, turning off the phone doesn’t cut it.
If you're serious, the phone stays home, and it should stay turned on.
A phone that’s powered off or suddenly drops offline can still raise red flags if it’s normally active. A phone left at home in its usual place, doing its usual background updates, looks normal. Anything else is suspicious.
Even powered down, some devices still ping towers when restarted, or have residual network logs recoverable from system memory.
Your phones location, active and turned on, is a better alibi than a phone turned off. Who goes out and doesn't take their phone these days? You are likely where your phone is.

Now, transport. It’s not just about avoiding license plate recognition. It’s about making sure your car doesn’t become your digital tracking device. That means:

• No modern infotainment systems. Bluetooth logs, GPS breadcrumb trails, and USB connections all record data.
• No E-tags or toll roads. Gantries silently scan you even if you don't pay.
• No Fitbit or smartwatches. Background GPS and health data can sync to the cloud.
• No Myki, Opal, or tap-on public transport cards.
• Avoid all known VicRoads camera infrastructure including intersections, freeway exits, and metro ring roads.
• Do not pass industrial zones, service stations, or retail strips with CCTV.
• Don’t walk past Ring or Arlo doorbells. They're everywhere.

We are not in Kansas anymore, Toto.

All duly noted.

(for a friend)

 

[Shortfusepsb]

All duly noted.

(for a friend)

Or, people could just go about their lives and not murder people. That would be nice.

 

[L_B]

We knew that, though, right? Police had the receipts. We knew all the trips she made that week and what she bought.

But until yesterday it wasn't known as part of the evidence there definitely being 10 steaks right? it's always been claimed to be only 6 BW and that was the BW leftovers the kids ate, minus scrapped off mushrooms and pastry... But then it emerged yesterday she admitted she put 4 in the freezer, so our hunch the kids ate non-BW steak is probably right!

 

[jesse]

Can I ask the Aussies about the prosecution's cross of Patterson? I'm puzzled by it. It seems Rogers simply posed "I suggest" statements, and EP either agreed or disagreed. We see that repeatedly. I don't remember Rogers asking any straightforward questions, she just basically made allegations and let EP respond.

Is this a quirk of Rogers' style of cross, or is there a prescribed pattern for the cross of a defendant in Australia (or maybe just Victoria?)

 

[jesse]

But until yesterday it wasn't known as part of the evidence there definitely being 10 steaks right? it's always been claimed to be only 6 BW and that was the BW leftovers the kids ate, minus scrapped off mushrooms and pastry... But then it emerged yesterday she admitted she put 4 in the freezer, so our hunch the kids ate non-BW steak is probably right!

I thought it was known that she bought 5 packs of 2 filets each..At least prior to Erin's statement we knew it. I can't remember how far back we knew.

And if police didn't have proof of it I doubt she'd have admitted it, honestly.

 

[JBowie]

It seems Rogers simply posed "I suggest" statements, and EP either agreed or disagreed.

The style of "You did this, didn't you?" accusatory statement followed by question is quite common in courts here, especially from prosecutors.

 

[loreet]

None of this looks chaotic or accidental to me. It looks methodical and well thought out.

Much of what brought me to this case was the intelligence of the accused and the deliberate planning. Things seemed to go according to plan until people started getting sick. It seems like even the most intelligent criminals with solid plans get tripped up after things go through to the murderous conclusion and then it is all very real as their plans are affected by unforeseen consequences.

 

[loreet]

This doesn't work.
Incognito mode and VPNs don’t make you invisible.
Even when browsers claim to clear caches, forensic tools can still retrieve residual data from device partitions. VPNs may mask IP addresses from websites, but they don’t stop local device logs, DNS leaks, or metadata collection. Investigators don't just look at your browsing history. They pull the raw data sitting in the guts of your device.

Second, turning off the phone doesn’t cut it.
If you're serious, the phone stays home, and it should stay turned on.
A phone that’s powered off or suddenly drops offline can still raise red flags if it’s normally active. A phone left at home in its usual place, doing its usual background updates, looks normal. Anything else is suspicious.
Even powered down, some devices still ping towers when restarted, or have residual network logs recoverable from system memory.
Your phones location, active and turned on, is a better alibi than a phone turned off. Who goes out and doesn't take their phone these days? You are likely where your phone is.

Now, transport. It’s not just about avoiding license plate recognition. It’s about making sure your car doesn’t become your digital tracking device. That means:

• No modern infotainment systems. Bluetooth logs, GPS breadcrumb trails, and USB connections all record data.
• No E-tags or toll roads. Gantries silently scan you even if you don't pay.
• No Fitbit or smartwatches. Background GPS and health data can sync to the cloud.
• No Myki, Opal, or tap-on public transport cards.
• Avoid all known VicRoads camera infrastructure including intersections, freeway exits, and metro ring roads.
• Do not pass industrial zones, service stations, or retail strips with CCTV.
• Don’t walk past Ring or Arlo doorbells. They're everywhere.

We are not in Kansas anymore, Toto.

Thank you for the advice! lol

 

[Megnut]

OK yes I do remember this part. Isn't it interesting how she can remember tiny details like that!

And that, while his loved ones are fighting for their lives, she still expects Simon to attend to her. She's not in a great position to be petty.

Some will suck you dry. Then get angry thst you're choking because it chafes their ears.

Good for Simon for getting that dig in.

JMO

 

[TootsieFootsie]

Dispatch from Morwell, a shrinking country town now home to the trial of the century

Crikey spent time in the throng of reporters that descended upon Morwell for the murder trial of Erin Patterson. These were our experiences.

www.crikey.com.au

Dispatch from Morwell, a shrinking country town now home to the trial of the century​

13th June 2025

Maybe behind a paywall. Posting it here for those who subscribe.