Australia mushroom deaths accidental, says cook

The Australian pistillate who cooked a beef wellington utilizing mushrooms which killed 3 relatives and near 1 captious has told constabulary it was an accident.

Erin Patterson, who is not facing charges, has provided a connection of events to police, section media report.

Police judge the victims had eaten decease headdress mushrooms - which are highly lethal if ingested.

In her statement, Ms Patterson said she had utilized immoderate dried mushrooms but did not cognize they were poisonous.

"I americium present devastated to deliberation that these mushrooms whitethorn person contributed to the unwellness suffered by my loved ones," said the 48-year old.

"I truly privation to repetition that I had perfectly nary crushed to wounded these radical whom I loved."

Her connection to Victoria Police has not been publically released but was reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Nine Newspapers connected Monday.

Australia has been gripped by the enigma implicit the fatal luncheon - held successful Ms Patterson's location successful the tiny municipality of Leongatha, Victoria connected 29 July.

Ms Patterson had invited her erstwhile in-laws Gail and Don Patterson, on with Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson and Heather's hubby Ian. Her estranged hubby could not be past minute.

Hours aft the meal, each 4 guests fell sick with what they initially thought was terrible nutrient poisoning.

Within days, Heather, 66, Gail, 70, and Don, 70, had died. Ian, 68, is inactive warring for his beingness successful a Melbourne infirmary arsenic helium awaits a liver transplant.

Ms Paterson was identified arsenic a fishy aft the deaths - arsenic it initially appeared that she and her children were unharmed from the meal. At the time, Australian constabulary had besides said she could beryllium wholly innocent.

In her connection reported connected Monday, Ms Patterson reiterated her innocence and said she herself had been hospitalised aft the repast owed to tummy pains.

Speaking to reporters extracurricular her location successful the contiguous aftermath of the incident, Ms Patterson had stated her innocence - but declined to reply questions astir what meals were served to which guests oregon wherever the mushrooms had travel from.

"I present precise overmuch regret not answering immoderate questions pursuing [my lawyer's] proposal fixed the nightmare that this process has become," she said successful her connection to police.

"I americium present wanting to wide up the grounds due to the fact that I person go highly stressed and overwhelmed by the deaths of my loved ones."

Ms Patterson said the mushrooms utilized to hole the repast were a substance of fastener mushrooms bought astatine a supermarket, and dried mushrooms purchased astatine an Asian market store successful Melbourne respective months ago.

Her children, who were not contiguous astatine the lunch, ate immoderate of the leftover beef Wellington the adjacent day. However the mushrooms had been scraped disconnected the crockery arsenic they bash not similar the fungi, she said.

Ms Patterson said she herself was hospitalised connected 31 July. She said she was enactment connected a saline drip and fixed medicine to defender against liver damage.

She said she had besides saved and fixed the remainder of the luncheon to infirmary toxicologists for examination.

In her connection she besides admitted lying to authorities astir a nutrient dehydrator seized by constabulary from a section extremity during investigations past week.

She said she had been questioned by her estranged hubby arsenic to whether she had poisoned his parents, and truthful panicked and disposed of the dehydrator arsenic she was disquieted she mightiness suffer custody of their children.