SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah (Court TV) – The attorney representing the Richins family shared an email that Kouri sent to investigators explaining some of her behaviors in the months after her husband’s death.
Children’s book author Kouri Richins, who is accused of fatally poisoning her husband, appears in court Monday, June 12, 2023, for a detention hearing. (Court TV)
Kouri Richins is facing a number of charges, including criminal homicide and aggravated murder, in the death of her husband, Eric. Eric was found dead in his bedroom after overdosing on fentanyl in 2022. Kouri has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Prosecutors have said that Kouri plotted to poison her husband and have alleged that she had financial motives for killing him. In the years prior to his death, Kouri tried to take out multiple life insurance policies on Eric, and shortly before his death, Eric changed his will and life insurance policy without telling his wife.
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Greg Skordas, the Richins’ family attorney shared an email that Kouri sent to investigators before her arrest with Court TV. The email, sent to investigators on April 19, specifically addresses “exotic vacations” she was alleged to have taken after her husband’s death.
In the email, Kouri said that she went on two trips since her husband’s death. She said she took one trip to Spain with her children in October 2022 after they qualified to play at a soccer camp.
Also, Eric and I went to Mexico every year, sometimes twice. We traveled A LOT. We have taken the boys to Meixco a few times, we like to go in January. However, January of 2022 we could not go because Eric had his hunting trip to Mexico trip of two weeks planned and it was too much that month. This is not new for us to go to Mexico, or for us to go out of the country, or on a vacation with our kids. I took my kids and my mom came with us in August 2022 to Mexico. As I hope you understand, the months prior to this, since Eric’s death have been hard to deal with.
Kouri also addressed issues in the couple’s marriage in the email, saying that Eric had an affair the same year he created a revocable trust and began looking into a divorce.
I moved my clothes out one weekend to make Eric understand I’m not kidding about leaving him if he doesn’t end things with (redacted). I did this on a Thursday or Friday while he was out of town, I was home Monday. I never stayed another night at that other house. Eric and I figured things out like most couples do. … He changed her name in his phone so I wouldn’t know about it, and honestly we worked things out and after that I never went through his phone again to see if he changed it back; but you can have his phone and can check.
Despite acknowledging issues in their marriage and saying that she and Eric went to counseling several times, Kouri denied that there were any financial issues in their home.
MORE: Sister of Eric Richins Claims Kouri Richins Attacked Her
No, Eric and I did not have financial problems ever. Yes, Eric made more money than me, do you make more money than your wives? Have I ever been financially reliant on Eric in the last 5 years? Absolutely not.
Kouri said in the email that Eric didn’t want her working, in part because his first wife cheated on him with someone she worked with, and also because Eric wanted their family to “live the typical conservative life where the man takes care of his family and the wife is a homemaker, wife, mom and that’s it. That is not my personality and not the way I was raised. I am very independent.”
Kouri closes the email offering to provide anything the police may need. “I just want this over, I just want our lives back and to move on and grieve and mourn my husband without looking over my shoulder constantly for you guys, or the idiotic private investigator or the Richins family.”
Kouri was arrested in May, a little more than a year after Eric’s death on March 4, 2022.
