Robert Durst charged with 1982 murder of wife Kathie Durst

The millionaire existent property scion Robert Durst, who was sentenced past week successful California to beingness successful situation for sidesplitting a confidante, has been charged successful suburban New York City with the decease of his wife, Kathie Durst, who vanished successful 1982, authorities confirmed connected Friday.

A authorities constabulary researcher filed a transgression ailment connected Tuesday successful a municipality tribunal successful Lewisboro, New York, accusing Durst of second-degree murder.

The enactment was not announced astatine the clip by immoderate instrumentality enforcement officials oregon the Westchester territory attorney, Mimi Rocah, who precocious convened a expansive assemblage to besides see charges.

“The Westchester region territory attorney’s bureau tin corroborate that a ailment charging Robert Durst with the execution of Kathleen Durst was filed successful Lewisboro municipality tribunal connected 19 October 2021. We person nary further remark astatine this time,” her bureau said successful a connection connected Friday.

The one-page felony ailment filed successful Lewisboro cites grounds successful the files of the Westchester territory attorney, the New York authorities constabulary and the Los Angeles territory attorney, arsenic good arsenic “conversations with galore witnesses and observations of defendants, recorded interviews and observations of Mr Durst’s recorded interviews and tribunal grounds successful related proceedings”.

The expansive assemblage was empaneled past week and has started proceeding witnesser testimony, a idiosyncratic acquainted with the substance told the Associated Press this week. The idiosyncratic was not authorized to talk publically astir the substance and did truthful connected information of anonymity. The expansive assemblage process is expected to instrumentality respective weeks and could besides nutrient an indictment connected apical of the municipality charge.

A connection seeking remark was near for Durst’s lawyer and Kathie Durst’s family.

Robert Durst, 78, was sentenced past week to beingness successful situation without parole for murdering a confidante who prosecutors accidental helped him screen up Kathie Durst’s killing. Los Angeles prosecutors accidental Durst changeable Susan Berman successful 2000 arsenic she was preparing to confess her relation to police.

After Berman’s death, Durst went into hiding, disguising himself arsenic a mute pistillate surviving successful a inexpensive flat successful Galveston, Texas. There, helium killed a neighbour and chopped up his body, but was aboriginal acquitted aft telling the assemblage helium did it successful self-defense.

Durst, who has galore aesculapian problems, sat successful a wheelchair during overmuch of the sentencing proceeding and successful the days since has been hospitalized connected a ventilator aft investigating affirmative for Covid-19, 1 of his lawyers said.

Kathie Durst was 29 erstwhile she vanished connected 31 January 1982.

Her assemblage was ne'er found. At the petition of her family, she was declared legally dormant successful 2017. Robert Durst divorced Kathie Durst successful 1990, citing abandonment.

He was not charged successful transportation with her disappearance until this week contempt respective efforts implicit the years to adjacent the case.

Authorities reopened the lawsuit successful 1999, searching a water and the couple’s home.

In the 2015 HBO documentary The Jinx: the Life and Deaths of Robert Durst, Durst appeared to admit sidesplitting radical and admitted helium made up details astir what happened the she disappeared due to the fact that helium was “hoping that would conscionable marque everything spell away”.

Durst, testifying successful the Los Angeles trial, denied sidesplitting Kathie Durst. After her aesculapian schoolhouse called to study that she hadn’t been going to class, helium said helium figured she was “out someplace having fun” and suggested that possibly cause usage was to blame.

“It hadn’t occurred to maine that thing had happened to her,” Durst testified successful August. “It was much like: what had Kathie done to Kathie?”

Durst was besides sentenced successful 2016 to implicit 7 years successful situation aft pleading blameworthy to a national weapons complaint stemming from a 2015 apprehension successful New Orleans.