The lunch guests were served beef Wellington – baked beef fillet with mushroom filling. But instead of champignons, the filling consisted of poisonous death cap mushrooms, one of the world's most toxic mushrooms.
The 50-year-old hostess is now facing trial, accused of murdering her former in-laws and her sister-in-law's sister in July 2023. A fourth person, the sister's husband, also became severely ill but survived the poisoning thanks to a liver transplant.
The 50-year-old denies the crime and has claimed that it was an accident. She risks life imprisonment.
The intent is the overarching question in this case, stated the judge when the trial began in the Australian state of Victoria on Wednesday.
Even the woman's ex-husband was invited to lunch, but never showed up.
The trial is expected to last for six weeks.
