A jury in Utah has found Kouri Richins guilty of murdering her husband, Eric Richins, by poisoning him with a fentanyl-laced drink in March 2022, according to court proceedings.

 

The verdict was delivered after around three hours of deliberation on Monday. Richins, 35, was also convicted of attempted murder linked to an earlier incident in which prosecutors said she poisoned her husband but did not succeed in killing him.

 

During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that Richins had accumulated significant debt, taken out life insurance policies on her husband and was involved in an extramarital relationship. They argued she believed she would inherit an estate valued at more than $4 million following his death.

 

“She wanted to leave Eric Richins but did not want to leave his money,” Summit County prosecutor Brad Bloodworth told the court.

 

The prosecution called more than 40 witnesses, including a woman who testified that she had sold the drugs used in the killing. Richins’ defence team did not call any witnesses and rested its case without having her testify.

 

Court documents showed that between December 2021 and February 2022, Richins contacted a person previously arrested on drug charges, requesting prescription pain medication. She initially obtained hydrocodone before asking for stronger substances, including fentanyl, referring to it in messages as “some of the Michael Jackson stuff”.

 

According to the documents, days after obtaining the drugs, the couple had a Valentine’s Day dinner after which Eric Richins became ill. “Eric believed that he had been poisoned,” the documents stated, adding: “Eric told a friend that he thought his wife was trying to poison him.”

 

Prosecutors said Richins later obtained more fentanyl and, on 4 March 2022, called police reporting that she had found her husband unresponsive. She told authorities she had served him a mixed vodka drink before going to sleep with one of their children. She later returned and found him cold to the touch.

 

A medical examiner determined that Eric Richins died from a fentanyl overdose, with five times the lethal dose found in his system.

 

Richins was also found guilty of fraudulently claiming insurance benefits after her husband’s death. She had pleaded not guilty to all charges. The aggravated murder conviction carries a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

 

Her arrest in March 2023 came two months after she published a children’s book, Are You With Me?, which she said was written to help families cope with loss.

 

“We wrote this book and we're really hoping that it provides some comfort for not just obviously, our family, but other families that are going through the same thing,” she said in an interview prior to her arrest.

 

She had dedicated the book to her husband, describing him as “my amazing husband and a wonderful father”.