Kouri Richins was arrested May 8 for the murder of her husband, Eric Richins.
Kouri Darden Richins has gone viral for all the wrong reasons. It was only on March 7 when the 33-year-old mother of three published a children's book -- Are You With Me? -- which sought to help kids cope with losing a loved one.
Nearly a month after that, while promoting her book, Kouri gave an interview to the ABC affiliate KTVX-TV in Salt Lake City, Utah and opened up about how she and her sons are grieving the loss of her husband and the father of her children, Eric Richins, who died on March 4, 2022. She recalled the sudden death as "unexpected" and that it "completely took us all by shock."
Fast-forward to May 8 -- a mere 62 days after she published her children's book -- Kouri was arrested on charges of aggravated murder and three counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
More specifically, prosecutors allege Kouri murdered Eric after poisoning his Moscow Mule cocktail with a deadly dose of fentanyl. And this all begs the question -- what happened and why?
They reportedly had marital problems
KTVX-TV in Salt Lake City reported that, prior to Eric's death, he removed his wife from his will and life insurance policy. The outlet reported that Eric replaced his wife with his sister as a beneficiary. It's alleged that he told his sister that he wanted to get a divorce.
The outlet then reported that Kouri allegedly attempted to change the life insurance policy so that she would be the lone beneficiary, which was later reverted back to Eric's sister.
She allegedly texted a drug dealer about pain medication
According to multiple reports, citing police documents, Kouri's alleged to have texted a drug dealer identified by the initials C.L., whom she inquired about "prescription pain medication for an investor who had a back injury."
Investigators claim she texted the dealer sometime between December 2021 and February 2022. According to the police documents, C.L. told investigators about supplying Kouri with hydrocodone pills. But, just two weeks later, C.L. said she reached out to him again, this time with Kouri telling C.L. that the investor wanted a stronger drug and that the investor specifically wanted "some of the Michael Jackson stuff." The late pop singer died of acute propofol intoxication in 2009.
The drug dealer alleged to investigators that Kouri wanted fentanyl, and she eventually got her hands on 15 to 30 pills.
The Valentine's Day dinner from hell
Not long after receiving the fentanyl-laced pills, investigators allege she had a Valentine's Day 2022 dinner planned at their Kamas, Utah home with Eric, and he soon "became very ill." The police documents state Eric told a friend that he thought his wife was trying to poison him.
Kouri allegedly contacted C.L. just two weeks later and again requested more fentanyl pills. The documents state the drug dealer delivered the pills to her outside the home Kouri, a real estate agent, was trying to sell just south of Park City, Utah.
Eric is found dead at home
Six days after getting the second set of fentanyl pills, Eric was found dead on March 4 of a fentanyl overdose. According to multiple reports, Kouri and Eric were said to be celebrating the closing of a sale on a home. To celebrate, Kouri allegedly made him a celebratory Moscow Mule cocktail at around 9 p.m. on the night of March 3, 2022.
Eric was in the bedroom, where he sipped it in bed. According to police documents, Kouri told investigators she slept in one of her son's bedrooms because he was having a nightmare, but that she woke up at around 3 a.m. and found Eric in their bedroom "cold to the touch."
After calling 911, paramedics initiated life-saving measures but were unsuccessful, and Eric was pronounced dead.
He was 39.
Kouri's children's book is published
Are You With Me? is published on March 7, 2023. The children's book is initially promoted as "a heartwarming and reassuring book that gently guides children through the difficult experience of losing a loved one. Written by a loving mother who personally faced this challenge, this book is designed to offer comfort and solace to young minds in a way that is both accessible and engaging."
The book has since been pulled from Amazon. When the book was published, Kouri dedicated it to "my amazing husband and a wonderful father." In promoting the book, Kouri told KTVX-TV that the book project was a collaborative effort.
"My kids and I wrote this book on the different emotions and grieving process that we've experienced in the last year, hoping it could help other kids deal with this and kind of find happiness someway or another," she said in the April 6 interview. "It's comforting for them that they're not living this life alone. Dad is still here, but in a different way."
Kouri also told the Utah news station why she decided to write the children's book.
"I just wanted some story to read to my kids at night and I just could not find anything," she said.
Kouri is arrested
She was arrested on Monday, May 8, on charges of aggravated murder and three counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
According to multiple reports, Kouri had told investigators that she left her phone plugged in next to her bed when she went to check on her son who was having a nightmare. But the investigation concluded that Kouri actually had her phone with her and it had been locked and unlocked multiple times between the time she was checking on her son and when she called 911. Investigators allege she also received messages that were later deleted.
A forensic search of her phone also led investigators to "several communications" with the drug dealer identified as C.L.
An autopsy and toxicology report ultimately determined that Eric had five times the lethal dosage of fentanyl in his system. What's more, investigators concluded that the drug was illicit and not medical-grade. The medical examiner also determined that the lethal dose of fentanyl had been ingested orally.
A hearing in the case is scheduled for May 19.
RELATED CONTENT:
