Quote · Crime, Conspiracy, Cults and Murder
Ep. 113 | The HORRIFIC Mushroom Murders
Where this was said
A Marriage Under Strain: Separations, Road Trips and Financial Generosity
At 25:30 · chapter starts 22:30
After the wedding, the couple used money from Erin's inheritance to buy a vehicle and meander through outback Australia before travelling to southern Africa, eventually settling in Perth in 2007. Their first child arrived in January 2009 following a difficult birth requiring emergency intervention; Don and Gail came to help, and Erin described her mother-in-law as 'really supportive and gentle and patient.' But the marriage was already under pressure: a road trip that went wrong led to Erin booking a flight and leaving Simon to drive back alone with their infant, the first of multiple separations. Between 2009 and 2015, they separated and reconciled several times across various Western Australian towns. Erin attributed the dysfunction to a failure of communication; Simon felt she was always the one who left. The final split came in November 2015, though they never divorced, continued sharing custody, attended the same church, and even travelled together as a family. Erin's grandmother's estate had left her a share worth around $2 million Australian dollars, and she lent hundreds of thousands to each of Simon's three siblings — his brother Matt alone received between $300,000 and $400,000 to build a home.
Erin Patterson's share of her grandmother's estate was evaluated at around $2 million Australian dollars, parceled out over eight years, making her financially independent.
Erin Patterson invited four close family members to a Beef Wellington lunch under the guise of seeking support for a cancer diagnosis. Three of them would be dead within a week.
