A new court filing reveals that a Utah woman, who is accused of killing her husband with a lethal dose of fentanyl, is now facing additional charges in the case. These charges include attempted aggravated murder, as she is believed to have poisoned him a month before his death.
Last year, Kouri Richins, 33, faced charges of aggravated murder and drug offenses in relation to her husband’s death, Eric Richins, 39. Although she has not yet entered a plea, she vehemently denies the allegations.
In May 2023, just one month before her arrest, Kouri Richins, a mother of three, made an appearance on a segment of “Good Things Utah” on KTVX, the Salt Lake City ABC affiliate. During the segment, she was promoting her book. Kouri Richins revealed that her husband of nine years had passed away in an unexpected manner, which came as a complete shock to their family.
According to the probable cause statement in the charging document, prosecutors claim that Eric Richins was first poisoned on Valentine’s Day, several weeks before his death from a fatal dose of fentanyl on the night of March 3, 2022.
According to the charging document, Eric Richins allegedly experienced an outbreak of hives after consuming a single bite of his beloved sandwich, which his wife had purchased for him from a local diner. In response, he promptly administered his son’s EpiPen and consumed a bottle of Benadryl before retiring for the night.
“I believe my wife attempted to poison me,” Eric Richins reportedly confided in a trusted friend later that day, according to the charging document.
Eric Richins did not have any food allergies, as stated in the charging document. The document also pointed out that opioids, including fentanyl, have the potential to cause allergic and pseudoallergic reactions, such as hives.
According to the charging document, Kouri Richins stated in a text to a friend about the incident on June 18, 2022, that her husband had never experienced hives or used an EpiPen.
According to a statement from Kouri Richins’ attorney, Skye Lazaro, shared with ABC News, her client “remains steadfast in maintaining her innocence” in light of the latest charges.
According to Lazaro, they have carefully examined the revised information and concluded that it does not have any impact on Kouri’s defense strategy for the charges brought against her by the State.
According to the probable cause statement, Kouri Richins reportedly informed the police that she had prepared Moscow Mules for herself and her husband on the night of his death. She mentioned that they had enjoyed the drinks while sitting on the bed, celebrating “something at work.”
According to the amended charging document, prosecutors claim that she bought illegal fentanyl just days before her husband’s near-death experience on Valentine’s Day 2022 and his subsequent death. The charges against her include two counts of distributing a controlled substance in connection with the alleged poisoning incidents. Notably, the new filing reveals that one of the drug charges from her previous charging document has been dropped.
According to the amended charging document, Kouri Richins is facing new charges, including three counts of forgery, two counts of insurance fraud, and two counts of mortgage fraud.
According to prosecutors, she is accused of forging her husband’s signature on an insurance application just weeks before his death. The insurance policy, which took effect 10 days prior to the alleged Valentine’s Day poisoning, had a death benefit of $100,000, as stated in the charging document.
In addition, the prosecutors allege that she provided counterfeit bank statements while applying for a mortgage with multiple companies in 2021.
When Kouri Richins’ husband passed away, she found herself in a difficult financial situation. She owed over $1.8 million to hard money lenders due to her involvement in house-flipping projects. However, she had some relief in the form of multiple insurance policies on her late husband’s life. These policies had a combined death benefit of $1.35 million. Additionally, she mistakenly thought she was entitled to another policy with a death benefit of $500,000.
Kouri Richins is currently in custody as she awaits trial. A preliminary hearing for her case has been scheduled for May 15th.
Lindsey Schwartz from ABC News has made a valuable contribution to this report.
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