Woman Charged With Poisoning Girlfriend's Curry

An Australian woman has been charged with allegedly poisoning her girlfriend's curry with snail pellets at the office where they both worked. The 43-year-old is accused of slipping the pellets into her partner's lunch after allegedly breaking into a chemical storage shed.

Western Australian police stated that the alleged victim, 58, had brought a container of curry to share with colleagues at her workplace in southern Perth in February. Staff consumed the dish during a morning tea break without apparent issues. However, when the victim returned to the staff kitchen at lunchtime to eat the leftovers, she discovered green granules mixed into the food, indicating tampering.

Upon tasting the curry, the woman experienced numbness on her tongue. She preserved the food and reported the incident to the police. Investigators determined that the pellets contained metaldehyde, a pesticide commonly used to kill slugs and snails.

Detectives believe the accused woman accessed a chemical storage shed between the morning break and lunchtime, stole the snail pellets, and subsequently mixed them into the curry. The two women are understood to have been in a relationship.

The 43-year-old was arrested earlier this month and has been charged with one count of endangering the life, health, or safety of a person. She is scheduled to appear in court in Perth next month.

This alleged poisoning attempt follows the high-profile case of Erin Patterson in Australia, who was jailed in 2023 for murdering three relatives after serving them beef Wellingtons containing poisonous mushrooms.