Victorian detectives could take months to complete their investigation into the mysterious deaths of Erin Patterson’s luncheon guests.
As the intriguing saga enters its second month, Chron Australia is able to announce that the Victoria Police Forensic Department has been asked to prioritize the analysis of biological material related to the investigation.
Pastor Ian Wilkinson was the only one of four guests to survive the poisonous Beef Wellington dished up by the housewife in Leongatha, Victoria, on July 29.
Erin Patterson is an interesting character in the case that has gripped the nation
Investigators have asked forensics to prioritize investigations related to the case
Gail and Don Patterson’s graves in Korumburra General Cemetery
Mr Wilkinson, his wife Heather and her sister Gail, and her husband Don Patterson were invited to lunch at a ‘conciliation’ meeting to discuss Mrs Patterson’s relationship with her estranged husband Simon, who withdrew at the last minute.
Chron Australia is not claiming that Erin Patterson is responsible for her death.
The Victoria Police Forensic Division has long been under fire from demands from eager detectives.
The courts are full of cases being delayed by overworked forensic staff, with some cases being delayed for up to a year.
Since even in court nothing has to do with the fungal death and the media storm surrounding the case is great, the police command is apparently anxious to enforce the forensic tests sooner rather than later.
Although delays in the tests are a cause for concern, police sources have told the Chron Australia that detectives are unlikely to have their ‘queue in their pockets’.
It has been over two weeks since Victoria Police issued a public update on their investigation.
At the time, Detective Inspector Dean Thomas gave mixed reports to the media about how they were treating Ms Patterson.
Don and Gail Patterson died after allegedly consuming poisonous mushrooms served by Erin Patterson
Ian Wilkinson and Heather Wilkinson (both pictured) became seriously ill after eating wild mushrooms. Mrs Wilkinson died while her husband remained in hospital
Detective Inspector Dean Thomas gave the media an update after police searched Erin Patterson’s home. The police have since refused to talk about the case
The house where Erin Patterson fed her guests a deadly Wellington beef
The veteran detective began his briefing by declaring that their relative’s death was “not suspicious.”
“The deaths are unexplained and to that end we are involved and working as hard as we can to find out why these deaths occurred and the circumstances surrounding them,” he said.
But under fire from the reporters, Inspector Thomas caused a stumbling backflip.
“The 48-year-old is, well, she’s (a suspect), um, it was her, and she’s because, um, she cooked those meals for us, for the people who were there,” she said he.
On August 5, police searched Ms Patterson’s home and took away her phones and computers for analysis.
She gave an interview without comment and was released that same evening.
News of this raid broke the next day, causing a media frenzy in the small country town where she lived with her two children.
Inspector Thomas told reporters at the time that Ms Patterson had shown no symptoms of her own while in hospital – a claim she later refuted in a written statement she later provided to investigators after consulting a lawyer.
Leongatha (pictured) has been inundated with reporters since the case was announced
Korumburra – just up the road from Leongatha – was the dwelling place of the deceased
He said homicide detectives were working to get to the bottom of the case.
“We still have a lot of work to do.” “We need to understand what caused these symptoms and what ultimately led to the deaths of these three people,” the detective said.
“We need to understand what happened, what caused the injuries… what led to her death and the circumstances surrounding all of that.” So it’s a very complex thing… it’s really interesting. You know that four people showed up and three of them died.’
Reporters spent much of August outside Ms Patterson’s home while her estranged husband Simon Patterson hired a publicist to fend off inquiries from around the world.
In the background, investigators will be analyzing Ms Patterson’s phone records and movements over the past few weeks and maybe months.
Your allegations set out in this written statement will be examined.
As tech experts comb through the data, officials on the ground will speak to anyone who can help them get closer to the truth.
Investigators will be closely monitoring the recovery of Mr Wilkinson, who remains critically ill at Austin Hospital.
What he says will likely help investigators in one way or another as the case progresses.
Ms Patterson’s ex-husband’s much-publicised illness will be the subject of a thorough investigation, with officials working to rule out any link to her cooking.
Erin Patterson is approached by media outside her home on August 8
Mr. Patterson was in an induced coma for 16 days and underwent three emergency operations, mainly on the small intestine.
“My family was asked twice to come and say goodbye to me as I was not expected to survive,” he posted on social media shortly after his wife split.
Elucidating his illness will prove difficult, especially when forensic material from the period is no longer available.
When confronted by the media earlier this month, Ms Patterson broke down in tears and said she had done nothing wrong.
“I am so devastated by what has happened and the loss to the community, families and my own children.” “You lost your grandmother,” she told reporters Aug. 8.
Six days later, her leaked testimony to investigators hit the headlines.
“I really want to reiterate that I had absolutely no reason to hurt these people I loved,” she allegedly told police.
Ms Patterson said she prepared the killer lunch using a mixture of button mushrooms from a major supermarket chain and dried mushrooms from an Asian grocery store in Melbourne.
Simon Patterson was supposed to go with his parents to the lunch that killed them
In her statement, Ms Patterson said she portioned the food onto plates and let her guests choose themselves.
She said she took the last remaining plate, ate a portion, and later turned the leftovers over to the hospital’s toxicologists for testing.
A dehydrator she had was later disposed of at the local landfill because she feared her estranged husband would blame her for his parents’ deaths and get custody of their two children, she said.
Ms Patterson told police she remained on good terms with her in-laws even after separating from her son.
“I’ve had a close bond with Simon’s parents for a long time. “Our relationship continued quite amicably after I ended the relationship with her son Simon,” she said.
“Our relationship was, to some degree, affected by seeing less of her after my marriage to Simon broke up, but I never felt differently about his parents.”