An Australian woman was convicted of killing three elderly relatives of her ex-husband with a meal laced with poisonous mushrooms, as well as of attempting to kill a fourth, reports "Reuters", reports News.bg.
The case caused a strong public response in the country.
Erin Paterson, 50, was found guilty of the murders of her mother-in-law Gail Paterson, her father-in-law Donald Paterson and Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson, as well as of the attempted murder of her husband Ian Wilkinson.
The four gathered for lunch at Paterson's home in Leongatha, a small town about 135 km southeast of Melbourne. She served them beef steaks, which were later found to be laced with poisonous mushrooms. She herself was given a separate portion without rice. After a 10-week trial, a jury found her guilty on all four charges.
Patterson pleaded not guilty, claiming the death was accidental. Her sentencing is expected to be announced later, and she faces a possible life sentence.
The prosecution, led by lawyer Nanette Rogers, said the defendant used a series of deceptive tactics to commit the crimes: she lied about having cancer to lure her relatives to lunch, served them poisoned food, faked her own poisoning, then tried to cover her tracks and mislead investigators.
The case is being heard in the town of Morwell at Paterson's insistence and has attracted widespread media attention, including podcasts and a documentary film in the works. Paterson is being defended by a team of four lawyers led by Colin Mundy, one of Melbourne's leading criminal lawyers.
Patterson was the only witness in his own defence. She spent eight days on the witness stand, five of them cross-examined. During the hearings, she spoke of self-esteem issues, an eating disorder and the emotional impact of the case on her family.
She admitted lying about her cancer diagnosis, but said she did so out of shame and to gain support from her family, not with the intention of murder. She also said she did not feel so badly poisoned because she secretly ate a large amount of cake brought by her mother-in-law and then vomited.
The jury, seven men and five women, retired for deliberation on June 30 and reached a decision within a week.