The red car belonging to Erin Patterson, the Australian woman who was convicted of poisoning her family members with death cap mushrooms, was spotted in a social media ad
A car belonging to the Australian convicted killer Erin Patterson was listed for sale on Facebook before being quickly taken down. Patterson was sentenced to life in jail earlier this month for murdering three relatives and trying to kill another with a poisoned beef Wellington.
Patterson’s red 2023 MG SUV was spotted on Melbourne’s Facebook Marketplace this week for AUD18,500 (£9,037). The caption mentioned that the vehicle was “priced to sell quickly” and that it was in “excellent condition” with 22,000km on it.
The listing was published by Ali Prior, Patterson’s power of attorney. The ad read: “Car is in excellent condition — drives beautifully, super economical, and still feels like new.”
Prior said: “I have power of attorney to sell her car if that’s what I’m instructed to do.” She said it had “nothing to do” with her client’s conviction and told the Herald Sun: “It’s a private ad selling a car.” However, the ad has since been deleted.
The car appeared throughout the trial, and the jury was shown CCTV footage of Patterson driving her MG to Koonwarra Transfer Station where she threw away the food dehydrator used to dry the death cap mushrooms, days after the poisoning occurred, reports the Daily Mail.
On September 8, Patterson was jailed for life with no chance of parole for at least 33 years. A Supreme Court judge said that Patteron’s crimes were the “worst category” for offending.
Patterson killed Don and Gail Patterso – her parents in law – and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, after serving a toxic beef Wellington at her home in 2023. Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, survived the meal, but has suffered from ongoing health issues related to the poisoning.
Patterson, a mother of two, has maintained her innocence, and has claimed that the death cap mushrooms in the dish were added by accident. She will serve three consecutive life sentences for the murders, and 25 years for the attempted murder.
Justice Christopher Beale told Patterson during her sentencing: “Not only did you cut short three lives and cause lasting damage to Ian Wilkinson’s health, thereby devastating the extended Patterson and Wilkinson families, you inflicted untold suffering on your own children whom you robbed of their beloved grandparents.”
Beale said that Patterson’s crime had involved an “enormous betrayal of trust”, adding: “Your victims were all your relatives by marriage. More than that, they had all been good to you and your children over many years, as you acknowledged in your testimony.
In his victim impact statement, Ian Wilkinson made an “offer of forgiveness to Erin”, but said he felt “compelled to seek justice” for the murders of Heather, Gail, and Don. Wilkinson continued: “I am distressed that Erin has acted with callous and calculated disregard for my life and the life of those I loved. What foolishness possesses someone to think that murder could be the solution to their problems, particularly people who only have good intentions towards her?”