Kouri Richins - Grief Author Found Guilty of Murder

she hoped would bring them comfort. But as investigators began to take a closer look at her husband's death, a very different story started to emerge, one that would turn a story about grief into a case of murder. This is the story of Corey Richins.

to watch it. I appreciate it. I should probably get a VPN specifically to change our area here soon so we can be like, hey, you know, we actually are in the States, let us watch this stuff.

him there in bed. She explained that she had fallen asleep in one of their children's room earlier that night see, one of their sons had been dealing with night terrors, and she said she stayed with him until she ended up drifting off herself. Then at some point in the early morning hours, she woke up and returned to their master bedroom, crawled back into bed, and when she did so, she reached over towards her husband and immediately knew something

wasn't right. He wasn't just unresponsive. In fact, his skin felt cold to the touch. Now later she even described that moment as if she were putting her arm over a cement brick. There was no warmth, there was no movement. Now. During this nine to one one call, the dispatcher tried to guide her through CPR, but there was a bit

of a delay. She seemed to panic and tried to deal with the situation in the in the sense of what everything was going on, and several minutes actually passed before compressions began, and the dispatcher soon counted out over the phone, keeping her in rhythm one two three four one two three four going through the compressions of CPR.

As emergency responders made their way to the home, Corey was still on the phone trying to follow these instructions and trying to explain what she was seeing and what was happening. But all anyone knew at that moment was that thirty nine year old man was lying unresponsive in his bed and his wife was a wreck while trying to ask for help and save the situation.

been gone for like some time. There was even stiffness in him, as rigamortis had clearly already begun to set in.

But as the clock ticked away in the minutes past, the first responders were getting no response. There was no sign of recovery. There was nothing. And it's very important to note that first responders also look for something called mechanism of injury, which is it essentially means how their patient got injured or came into the state that they

are in. For example, if there are lacerations or an indication of physical harm, did they get hit by a car, or they're empty bottles of pills next to them on the nightstand, potentially things that indicate what happened, so they can, you know, treat accordingly. However, in this case, there was no visible trauma. There was no immediate indication of what had caused this. There was no overturned furniture, no signs of a struggle, no drugs nearby, no nothing obvious in

the room. That explained why a healthy thirty nine year old man wouldn't suddenly be unresponsive in his own bed in the middle of the night. Now, because of this, the possibility of a natural cause was considered. It must have been something sudden and internal, and even first responders mentioned a suspected aneurysm as there was some blood coming out of his mouth and nose as they began their

CPR compressions. This would have explained the lack of external signs a sudden collapse maybe, and confusions around the situation, but even that didn't fully account for what they were seeing. Still, though, despite their efforts, despite their initial preliminary investigation for this mechanism of injury, Eric was officially pronounced dead at three point fifty eight. AM.

early and they stick. Eric was also raised as a religious individual in a religious household, specifically within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, and at one point he spent time on a mission in Mexico, which left him fluent in Spanish and shaped a lot of how people later described him. All around. He was very disciplined. He was grounded, dependable, not someone who chased any sort of chaos or lived reckless. Now, this sort of character that he had did well for him as an adult.

As soon as he built a stonemasonry business from the ground up, it did immediately well. I mean, it was physical work, it was constant work, and to top it all off, though he was good at it, he was a man who showed up, who handled what needed to be done. And that same steadiness carried into his personal life too, not just his career he was a husband and more importantly, a father to three young boys. People close to him described him as someone who took that

role very seriously. He was involved and focused on providing a stable life for him and his family. But most importantly for this story, there's something else that stands out when you look at Eric and who he was, especially in the context of what would later happen to him. See, he had no history of drug use. There was no pattern of any sort of risky behavior at all, no indication that he was experimenting with substances or living in a way that would lead to a path like that.

For all intents and purposes, he was living a life that was, as you might say, straight as an arrow. Now, Corey Richins was someone who seemed to have built a pretty full life too. She worked in real estate, specifically flipping houses. There were a lot of big properties that she dealt with, ones that had fast turnarounds, large dollar figures being thrown around, all that sort of thing, and she and Eric had been married for years at this point,

raising their three young boys. By all accounts, it was a very busy, stable life, work, kids, projects, the kind of day to day routine most families do fall into Now, after Eric's death, that image only seemed to solidify around Corey. But in the beginning of their life together, life was a bit tougher, and neither of them were working the multi million dollar businesses that they would eventually look after.

They instead had a bit more regular of jobs. And when Corey and Eric met, she was working as a cashier at home Depot and Eric came through the till line purchasing some supplies for his company that had just been in its infancy stage. Now, Eric wasn't someone who put himself out there very easily. It actually took a bit of encouraging from people around him to go back to Home Depot and talk to that pretty girl at

the checkout till. But when he did, well, things took off from there and they moved quickly.

their three kids. Eric had his business that was growing significantly, and Corey now had her work that she started in real estate. Now, before they got married, Corey and Eric put up a prenuptial agreement, so on paper it was fairly straightforward. Both of them agreed that what they brought into the marriage and what they had built individually would remain separate. There wouldn't be any shared ownership of each

other's income, property, or assets. This was extremely important, primarily for Eric because his company was taking off due to all that hard work that he had poured into it. Now there was one exception on paper, though, if either of them died while they were still married, the situation changed. So if Eric had passed away, his business and assets would transfer to Corey. The agreement essentially shifted from separation to full access under that one specific condition.

real estate was a bit different. She focused on flipping those homes which looked very successful, especially when dealers deals sorry, are moving between properties, with this property going out and this one being sold and this one being bought. It's all this chaos basically going and that kind of business depends heavily on borrowing, timing, and while a lot of risk involved. So when things go well well, they can

be very profitable. But if they don't, financial pressure can build quickly and that's where a lot of things go wrong. And for Corey, at some point that pressure started to grow on her. Her business began taking on more and more projects, and with that came more and more borrowing. Loans were taken out to finance certain deals. Credit was used to keep projects going, and overall the amount of money that was tied up in these properties just kept increasing.

On its own, that might not have been in a big issue, you know, someone just working in real estate. It's not unusual for that sort of thing to occur, but it was happening in a way that began to create a lot of problems. And one of the most significant issues involving a home was on an equity line

of credit taken out against Eric's property. Ooh, now, this line of credit that was taken out against the property was an amount of around two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and it was something that Eric had not even knowingly approved, and it was alleged later on that the document had even been forged.

And by the early time in twenty twenty two, estimates of that total debt connected to Corey's real estate activity reached into the millions.

but there was involving their future and everything they'd built together. Now, at some point the financial situation stopped being something they could have just sit in the background, and Eric actually became aware that something wasn't right. He found that money had been taken out in ways he hadn't approved of. That accounts existed that he had not ever agreed to, and the scale of all of this was much larger than something that could be explained in simple misunderstandings or

bad decisions. It was too much, and it was all something that directly involved his name, his property, and his financial standings, things he didn't sign for. In October of twenty twenty, he took a step that made it clear how serious he was viewing the situation. He met with an estate planning attorney. During that meeting, he explained that he had discovered what he believed was ongoing misuse of his finances, not a one time issue, but something that

happened continuously over a period of time. And from there he began to make some changes. He removed Corey as the beneficiary in his life insurance policy, he took control of his assets and how they would be handled moving forward, and most importantly, he created a trust, and that trust placed his estate, including his business and everything that he owned, under the control of his sister.

stuff when I can't hide five bucks. Well yeah, not that I want to hide five bucks, you know what I mean?

a bit of a history. But it didn't stay casual for long and that relationship became a lot more personal and eventually it turned into, as you can guess, I'm sure, a romantic one. From that point on, there were two separate realities to developing at the same time. One on one side, there was, you know, with Corey in her life and home, right that marriage that at least on the outside, still appeared intact with three young kids in

the shared household. And on the other side, there was a new relationship with conversations that weren't tied to her role as a wife or mother at all, one that didn't carry that same pressure complications that were going on in their life. Inside that new and exciting relationship, there were conversations about the future, what life could look like under different circumstances. Now, those conversations went further than just

general speculation or romantic daydreaming. There were moments where she talked about actually wanting to leave her husband Eric and about imagining a life where that relationship was no longer part of the picture. In one text exchange, she even asked Duress directly about the possibility of marriage, framing it as if something that could happen one day if they were no longer Eric in the picture.

one way or another. Now, what makes this part of the story so important isn't just the existence of that relationship though, it's the affairs happen in many situations and on their own, they don't necessarily point to anything beyond, you know, bad personal choices or relationship breakdowns. Yeah, affairs are bad, but it's not murderous or anything.

Eric was taking steps to separate himself financially and legally. Literally, everything was drifting apart in this situation, and because of all that, by the time twenty twenty one, came around, there were already a few different pressures building inside the relationship. Corey and Eric soon took a trip to Greece. They were getting away for a bit, spending time somewhere completely

removed from their normal routine in businesses. But during that trip something happened that would take on a very different meaning later on. At one point, Eric became suddenly and severely ill. It wasn't a gradual illness that came on with a little bit of you know, sneezing, coughing. Oh, my stomach kind of hurts a bit. No, it was something that didn't need to evolve. It was on set very fast, and the reaction was intense enough that it

stood out in their memory. It was as sick that also didn't seem to match anything obvious like food poisoning or exhaustion. The details around exactly what caused it weren't clear at the time. There wasn't an immediate explanation or any sort of diagnoses. It was treated as one of those situations where someone goes traveling and gets sick and

things pass. But Eric, though he didn't completely brush it off. Afterwards, he spoke to his sister about it and During that conversation, he expressed something that at the time may have sounded unusual, but in hindsight carries so much weight because he told his sister he believed he may have been poisoned. Now, it wasn't something he had investigated or gone down a rabbit hole or anything like that, and at that point there wasn't anything to confirm anything. So there was no evidence,

no pattern, there was nothing to support that claim. So it stayed there a serious accusation, and that was that.

she knew through her work. That person was a woman named Carmen, who was a housekeeper who had in the past been connected to individuals involved in drug related activity. Now, the messages between them were normal at first, but at some point the nature of their communication started to change, and Corey began asking about obtaining prescription pain medication. Now the requests that she were sending were for drugs like hydrocodin, which is a potent semisynthetic opioid, analgesic which is used

to treat severe chronic pain. Then, over more time, the conversations shifted once again. She began asking for something stronger, not just general pain medication. This time, though, but something much more potent. In one exchange, she referred to it in a way that stood out, asking for what she described as the Michael Jackson stuff quote unquote, which was a reference commonly associated with powerful drugs that had been linked to his death. Now that was a clear step

beyond what she'd just been asking for before. From this point on, basically the focus moved towards asking for fentanyl.

The reaction came quickly, just like when it was in Greece. He developed this sickness fast, but this time he developed hives and his body began reacting in ways that suggested something more serious than a mild allergic reaction. His breathing became difficult, and the situation escalated to the point where he had to actually do something about it himself. He used an EpiPen and took benadryl in an attempt to manage what was happening. Now those measures appeared to help,

and soon the immediate danger started to pass. He never lost consciousness and he did not end up going to the hospital that night, but the severity of what had happened while it left a lot of massive red flags.

formal came of it. Once again, no report, no investigation, and still no clear evidence that could confirm what he was suggesting. In the weeks that followed Valentine's Day, life simply continued on. There were still responsibilities to handle, there were still children to take care of, and ongoing work tied to both of their careers and their day to

day routine pushed forward. But behind the scenes, Corey's communication related to obtaining drugs continued, and at one point in those conversations there was an indication that what had previously been acquired was not strong enough, suggesting that the earlier usages of the drugs had not achieved the desired results.

She had just purchased a very significant property. It was a mansion priced at two point one million dollars. Now some reports suggest that it could have even been higher than that, at three point one but either way, it was a massive mansion and if everything went as planned, they were going to flip this property and it had the potential of bringing in a substantial return on its investment. But it was a big business move and they were celebrating. Now.

At some point that evening, Corey prepared a drink for Eric. It was a Moscow mule, a mixed typically of vodka, ginger beer, and lime. It's usually served in like a copper cup, and it's a common drink. It's something that fit naturally to the idea of them celebrating the occasion at home. They were in their bedroom when he had it, and I'm sure they did a little cheers before even drinking it, and not long after the night began to

settle into its normal rhythm. Remember, they weren't partiers or anything, so they're celebrating was pretty minimal. Around nine thirty pm, Corey left the master bedroom, where she said she went to one of their son's room because he was experiencing a night terror, and she stayed with him for a bit before falling asleep in there herself. From that point forward, her account was that she remained there with her son

for several hours. However, contrary to what she claimed about her sleeping, her phone data would later show that she was seen on her phone and it was active during that time when she was supposedly asleep, So her phone was unlocked multiple times in that period leading to the early morning, and that detail would become part of this investigation going forward, raising questions about what really happened in

those hours. Now, sometime after three am, that's when she returned to the master bedroom, and that's when she said she reached towards Eric and realized something was wrong. He wasn't moving, there was no response, and she touched him and he was already cold. What followed was that nine one one call that had brought everything into motion. But by the time she made that call, whatever had happened to him had already occurred and he was dead.

it looked like a sudden, unexplained death. But when you place it along everything that had happened in the weeks and the months leading up to that night, the request for the drugs, the earlier incidents, growing tension begins to feel a lot less isolated, less like a single event, and more like a final point in a sequence that had already been set in motion. Now, in the immediate aftermath of Eric's death, there wasn't a clear answer for

what had happened to him. From the perspective of first responders, there was no visible signs of trauma. The scene didn't suggest a struggle or anything external that could cause this, given how suddenly it occurred. One of the earliest possibilities was possibly an aneurysm, but there was still no sure sign. It accounted for the lack of visible injuries and the speed at which everything had unfolded, but that assumption didn't

hold up for long. As part of the standard process for someone as young and healthy as Eric, an autopsy was conducted to determine his cause of death, and when the findings came back, the toxicology reports showed Eric had a significant amount of fentanyl in his system. In fact, he had more than five times the lethal dose.

he had. There was no evidence inside the home that suggested he had access to fentanyl on his own, and the presence of that substance in that quantity did not fit anything previously known about him, and that possibility of the unknown method on how fentanyl ended up in his system became the central question moving forward in this case, and importantly so because a fentanyl overdose, especially one of that level, isn't something that typically occurs without a clear source.

So investigators who were now entering the picture needed to determine where it came from and how it was ingested, and whether Eric had any connection known to it before. Now. Those who knew him very well, in fact, were very consistent in what they all said regarding this. Eric did not use drugs. He wasn't involved in anything that would have put him in contact with fentanyl whatsoever, and there was nothing in his life that pointed in that direction.

The idea that he had somehow overdosed on this on his own didn't align at all. Now, that alone didn't prove anything. People lead secret lives all the time, However, it didn't make the situation any easier to explain. So digging into what happened, investigators began working through the timeline

surrounding his death. They looked at the hours leading up to it, the people who he had been in contact with, and anything that might explain how fentanyl could have entered his system, And as they did that certain details stood out. The events on Valentine's Day were one of the first that came back into focus all of a sudden. The earlier illnesses, the severity of the reaction, and the way that Eric had described it. Afterwards all began to carry a hell of a lot more weight, and the same

was true for that trip to Greece. At the time, it was an unexplained illness with a bit of suspicion, but now it was another moment that didn't quite fit, like the idea of a sudden accidental overdose. Investigators also began examining Corey's statements a lot more closely. Her account of the night remained consistent in some areas, but there

were elements that raised some questions. The timeline she provided didn't fully align with the data from her phone, as I mentioned, which showed activity during the period when she said she was asleep. From there, the investigation expanded into viewing more phone records, and they were analyzed too, things like communication history, search activity, and deleted data, which had all become part of the process, and as more information

was gathered, more was coming to the surface. For example, they found significant amounts of that deleted data, messages that had been removed, conversation that were no longer visible to normal view and when that data was recovered it was jaw dropping stuff. They were messages related to obtaining drugs, and those messages traced back to the same connection that had been identified earlier, the housekeeper who had access to

people involving drug distribution. There were those initial requests for pain meds than ones followed by a shift towards something stronger. References to fentanyl were there as well. Investigators also examined Internet search history from her phone, and among searches were questions about lethal doses of fentanyl, how long does it take for drugs to take effect, and what happens on

a death certificate in a case involving poisoning. There were also searches related to deleting data and information about life insurance payouts. It was all extremely damning digital evidence that had Corey firmly under the microscope of investigators, and as such they kept looking into her. Statements made after Eric's

death were soon reviewed. In early conversations with authorities, Corey herself had said that Eric did not have a history of drug use, which aligned with what others had said about him, though I should note at this point there is evidence that Eric would occasionally take THHC gummies for sleep purposes, but the doses were minor and the purchases were from federally regulated retail sources regardless. Later, as the case developed, there were some suggestions from Corey that he

may have been using other drugs regularly. Now, in the days and weeks following Eric's death, life didn't stop. There were immediate responsibilities to handle, including funeral arrangements and three young children who had just lost their father, and it was tough for them. They were young, they just experienced

a massive and unexpected loss. There were conversations about what had happened, explanations given by people in their lives, and an effort to maintain some sense of normalcy for the family. But alongside all of that, there were decisions and actions that also began to draw attenson. One of the most notable moments came almost immediately the big real estate deal that was being celebrated the night before Eric died. It didn't disappear. Instead, it moved forward on schedule. The property closed,

and Corey finalized the transaction shortly after his death. Now, that can be explained as part of an ongoing business process, something that had already been in motion and couldn't easily be paused. Sure, but still there were also attempts by Corey to access a safe that belonged to Eric. It was something that led to tension within the family, particularly between Corey and Eric's sister, who, as I mentioned earlier, was the one Eric left his finances too. Well.

or accidental death. From their perspective, she was a grieving wife who just lost her husband unexpectedly. The idea that she could have been involved and his death didn't align with anything they knew about her or the situation. To them, the focus was on supporting her and the children, not questioning what had happened. The divide existed very early on, right after Eric passed away, and it remained that way consistently.

The two completely different interpretations of the same event, held by two different sides of people who were all looking at the same loss but coming from very different conclusions. Now, at around ten or eleven months after Eric's death, Corey also began presenting a different version of herself Publicly. She was a grieving widow dealing with three children who did not understand the death of their father, or at least

understand how to process it. She said she looked all over and could not find any resources or children's books on dealing with grief, and since she couldn't find one, she decided she was going to write and publish a children's book herself. Now, as far as reports go, the book was written with the help of a ghostwriter, meaning she didn't actually write it herself, but nonetheless it was written to help their son's cope with the loss of their father. The title of the book is are You

with Me? And it reads from the perspective of a child asking their father if he's still with them after death, and then shortly through the book it changes to the father's perspective, saying he is always there with them, even when they can't see him. The interviews that she was in she spoke about wanting something that she could read to them at night that could help explain what had

happened in a way that they couldn't understand. The book was meant to bring comfort not just to her own family, but to others going through something similar, and it also reinforced the image of a grieving wife trying to hold things together. It wasn't until later, as the investigation became public that the contrast between that image that she was betraying and the allegations against her became impossible to ignore.

that work led to a decision. Corey Richins was arrested and formally charged with aggravated murder, tied to the allegations that she had intentionally administered a lethal dose of fentanyl to her ex husband Eric.

to access those funds he died. At the same time, there were efforts to gain control over assets connected to his state that we already know, right, but Eric had of course already changed them. Corey wasn't the beneficiary. It was over to his sister.

in custody, a handwritten letter was discovered. It was located inside the jail in her cell, hidden within a book. The pages were labeled, organized and written in a way that suggested it had been thought through careful, and at the top of the pages, the phrase walk the dog appeared repeatedly, and the content of the letter laid out a series of instructions. It described a version of events in which Eric had been obtaining drugs himself, specifically fentanyl,

from outside sources. This letter suggested that he had been using those substances regularly and that his death could have been a result of his own actions rather than anything that was done to him. The structure of the letter, however, stood out massively as well. See it wasn't written as a personal reflection or a casual explanation. Now, this letter was clearly written by Corey herself and outlined how this

version of events could be communicated. It referenced specific people, including family members, and it described how information could be passed along, moving from one person to another, eventually reaching legal representation. From the perspective of prosecutors, this was interpreted

as an attempt to influence testimony. Basically, this letter, prosecutors believed, was Corey trying to get people to tell a specific version of events in their testimony during court one which Eric was using drugs himself and that the death wasn't her fault. Prosecutors basically believed she is fabricating a tale, trying to pass it along to people who will appear in court and have that fabricated story be presented as fact.

like notes or maybe even a diary journal. Yeah, not a set of instructions meant to actually be acted on, of course not. Why would she do that? Right, So, in that context they maintained that she should that this

should not be treated as evidence of manipulation whatsoever. Now, arguments were made in courts about whether this letter should be considered relevant or not and what it actually represented, But ultimately, while it did not result in additional charges related to witness tampering, it remained part of the broader discussion surrounding the case.

that Eric's death was a single, isolated act. Instead, they framed it as a final step in a pattern that had been developing over time. They pointed to the earlier incidents, the illness in Greece, the reaction of Valentine's Day, and placed them alongside the drug acquisition timeline and the events of March third and fourth. From their point of view,

those pieces formed a very clear progression. They presented evidence showing that Corey had sought out increasingly stronger substances, eventually obtaining fentanyl. They tied that to the toxicology results, which showed the concentration in Eric's system that far exceeded a lethal amount. They also introduced the digital evidence, including the search history deleted messages, all to support the idea that this had been planned and was not accidental. Financial pressure

was also another key part of their argument. They outlined that the extent of the debt connected to the real estate activity was there, as well as the existence of life insurance policies, and it would have all provided a financial benefit to her, but only after Eric's death while they were still married because of that prenuptial agreement.

they argued was missing. They pointed out that there was no direct evidence whatsoever showing that Corey had physically administered fentanyl to Eric, no recording, no witness, no single piece of proof that clearly established that moment, and no other proof that could indicate he ingested it from another source. They also challenged the reliability of certain parts of the

investigation too. The connection to the drug source was questioned, including inconsistencies and testimony and circumstances under which statements had been made. They raised the possibility that Eric may have had access to the substances on his own, and that the death could have been a result of something other

than intentional poisoning. In their view, the case relied too heavily on interpretation and circumstantial evidence to prove anything but above all that happened on the trial, one of the most notable aspects was how it ended. See, the prosecution

had called more than forty witnesses to the stand. They questioned, you know, her boyfriend behind the scenes, right, They questioned that Carmen person, the one where she got drugs from family members, friends, All these people, they examined them in depth, and when it came time for the defense to call a witness to the stand. When it was their turn, they didn't call a single witness to testify.

guilty on all counts. The convictions included aggravated murder, attempted murder related to the Valentine's Day incident, and multiple counts of fraud tied to financial activity and insurance claims after Eric's death.

their head, look down, and nothing more. So. There was little outward reaction from Corey as guilty was read aloud in the court. She did as instructed as each count was confirmed she hung her head in defeat and in shame, but outside the legal outcome, there was still another reality to consider. Sentencing has been scheduled for May thirteenth, twenty twenty six, which means, as of recording this podcast, Corey

has yet to be sentenced for her crimes. Also, the day of the sentencing when its scheduled, May thirteenth, also happens to be Eric's birthday. That day, he would have been turning forty four years old if you were still in this world now. Even though we don't know the sentence just yet, we do know that the aggravated murder conviction alone carries a sentence with a possibility of twenty five years to life in prison, so it is likely Corey will receive a lot of years since she has

many charges on top of that one. Now, when everything is laid out from the beginning to the end, the story doesn't feel like a single moment. Feels like a very convoluted series of decisions and small actions and changes that built over time. And that's because it's exactly what it is. It started with a normal life with a relationship and a family that were growing businesses in a wealthy lifestyle. But there wasn't a clear dividing line where

everything suddenly changed. No, that shift happened gradually through financial strain, personal decisions, and moments that took one person down a very dark path that destroyed a home and left one man dead and three sons without a father. Eric was their father. He was someone who showed up for them, someone who built a life for them, and who was supposed to be there to watch them grow up. That's the part that doesn't get to be replaced no matter

what the outcome of this case is. And that's the story of Eric Riches.

ones to me a bit more. So maybe I should start looking for the serial killer ones or some different ones. I think we are also overdue for a survivor case as well.

and sign up. That will be getting posted here in the next day or so, so you can hear what this book is about and what she had to say, what this convicted murderer had to say about dealing with grief.

an independent podcast. We will forever be an independent podcast, and we get to keep doing this because you support us. You're still here at the end and that means a lot, so thank you very much, and of course until next time, stay wicked and oh