Wealthy New York real estate heir and convicted murderer Robert Durst has died at age 78. He was dogged for decades with suspicion in the disappearance and deaths of those around him before he was convicted last year of killing his best friend and sentenced to life in prison.
Durst died in a state prison hospital facility in Stockton, Calif., his attorney Chip Lewis said. He said it was from natural causes due to a number of health issues.
In September, Durst was convicted of shooting Susan Berman at point-blank range in 2000 at her Los Angeles home. He was sentenced to life Oct. 14. Two days later, he was hospitalized with COVID-19, his trial attorney Dick DeGuerin said.
Durst had long been suspected of killing his wife, Kathie, who went missing in 1982 and has been declared legally dead. He was finally indicted in November for second-degree murder in her death.
Prosecutors in Los Angeles presented evidence Durst silenced Berman because she helped him cover up Kathie’s killing and was about to talk to investigators. They also argued he killed a Texas man who discovered his identity when he was living secretly in Galveston after Berman’s killing.
Durst was acquitted of murder in that case in 2003, after testifying he shot him in self-defence.
More to come