Global Courant 2023-05-20 01:34:59
Kouri Richins, the author of a children’s book about grief who was accused of fatally poisoning her husband last year, was believed to have taken out nearly $2 million in life insurance before his death, according to new provincial data.
The Summity County law firm in Utah on Thursday filed an amended complaint against Richins, a mother of three.
The new complaint alleges that between 2015 and 2017, Richins bought four different life insurance policies on the life of her husband Eric Richins for a total of more than $1.9 million.
Eric “didn’t know” about the different life insurance policies, according to the new pricing document.
UTAH AUTHOR ACCUSED IN MURDER OF HUSBAND WHO WAS PREsumed Caught Attempting To PAY HIS LIFE INSURANCE BENEFITS
Utah author Kouri Richins allegedly attempted to steal her husband’s life insurance benefits before his death in March 2022. (KPCW via AP/family handout)
On January 1, 2022, Kouri “secretly and without consent changed the beneficiary for Eric’s $2 million life insurance policy policy for itself,” the document reads.
The insurance company notified Eric, who turned the beneficiary back into his business partner.
UTAH CHILDREN’S BOOK AUTHOR HAD ‘PERFECT’ MARRIAGE TO HUSBAND BEFORE ALLEGED MURDER: FRIEND
Shortly before his death, Eric removed Kouri from his will and instead made his sister the beneficiary, investigators said. His family told authorities he feared for his life after Kouri allegedly tried to poison him several years ago in Greece and again on Valentine’s Day 2022.
An obituary for Eric Richins describes him as an “avid outdoorsman and dedicated hunter”. He enjoyed helping his family’s cattle ranch and grow his “successful” mansonry business. The obituary also describes him as a devoted family man. (Facebook/Kouri Richins)
On Valentine’s Day of 2022, Kouri reportedly made Eric a sandwich and left it in the seat of his truck with a “love note,” according to the new charging document. Eric ate the sandwich and then developed hives and trouble breathing. He was able to administer his son’s Epipen to himself and survived.
He later told friends and family that he thought his wife was trying to poison him, the county attorney’s office said.
UTAH MAN FORGIVED BY AUTHOR WOMAN THOUGHT SHE HAD AN AFAIR: FAMILY SPOX
The pair apparently had financial differences that stemmed from Kouri’s desire to purchase a $2 million mansion under construction in Wasatch County. She wanted to flip the mansion and sell for a profit, says a writ.
Utah children’s book author Kouri Richins had a controversial relationship with her husband brought about by financial differences before she allegedly killed him with fentanyl. (TownLift, Will Scadden/Facebook)
Eric apparently thought the house was too expensive, his family told investigators.
Kouri, a real estate company owner, is accused of poisoning Eric with a Moscow Mule spiked with fentanyl, an opioid that is lethal in small doses, as they celebrated a house sale on March 3, 2022.
UTAH CHILDREN’S BOOK AUTHOR, HUSBAND SPARED OVER ‘FRESHED’ MANSION BEFORE HIS ALLEGED MURDER
The suspect told police when they arrived on the morning of March 4, 2022, that she served her husband a cocktail in bed that night. She said she went to check on her sleeping sons, and when she returned to her bedroom, she found her husband unresponsive.
READ THE AMENDED COMPLAINT:
A medical examiner later determined that Eric had five times the lethal dose of fentanyl in his blood.
The next day, Kouri reportedly made a deal on the Wasatch County mansion “alone”, after her husband was pronounced dead.
UTAH CHILDREN’S BOOK AUTHOR ACCUSED OF FATALLY POISONING HUSBAND
That same day, she apparently hosted a “big party at her house where she drank and partied,” another arrest warrant says. She also hired a locksmith that day to open Eric’s safe, which contained up to $165,000, according to the new indictment document.
Chares filed against Kouri Richins are based on agents’ interactions with Richins and an unnamed acquaintance who apparently told authorities she sold fentanyl to the mother of three. (Facebook/Kouri Richins)
When Eric’s sister confronted Kouri about the safe, saying she couldn’t open it because she wasn’t a trustee in Eric’s will, Kouri allegedly punched her in the face and neck.
Prior to recent events, the couple seemed to have a “perfect” and loving relationship, their girlfriend Linda King told Fox News Digital.
After Eric’s death, Kouri wrote a children’s book about death, “Are You With Me?”
A description of the book, which was listed on Amazon for $14.99, reads, “Are You With Me?” is “a must-read for any child who has experienced the pain of loss, and for parents who want to give their children the emotional support they need to heal and grow.”
Audrey Conklin is a digital reporter for Fox News Digital and FOX Business. Email tips to [email protected] or on Twitter at @audpants.
