Robert Durst dies at the age of 78

For decades, Robert Durst was able to evade justice until he was convicted of murder. After his death at the age of 78, one crime is still unresolved.

Robert Durst in a Los Angeles courtroom in March 2020.

Robyn Beck / AP

(dpa) The notorious murderer Robert Durst is dead, according to his lawyer. The American millionaire died on Monday at the age of 78 in California, as defense attorney Chip Lewis announced on request. Durst was in custody of the judiciary and died of natural causes.

In October, the Los Angeles real estate heir was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole for the murder of a friend over 20 years ago. He was previously found guilty by a jury of having shot and killed his friend Susan Berman at her Beverly Hills home over the Christmas period of 2000. The thirst, who suffered from bladder cancer among other things, appeared sitting in a wheelchair in the courthouse. Most recently, he was also sick with Covid-19. His lawyers announced that they would appeal.

Thirst was also in court earlier. In 2003 he confessed to having killed and dismembered a neighbor in Galveston, Texas, two years earlier. The killing was done in self-defense, he panicked and decided to dismember the body. Thirst was acquitted. According to prosecutors, Durst wanted to steal the man’s identity to avoid the investigation into his wife’s disappearance.

One fact remains unresolved

Most recently, a prosecutor in New York state had also officially filed a lawsuit against Durst because of the disappearance of Durst’s ex-wife Kathie McCormack Durst in 1982. The case caused quite a stir in the United States at the time, but the body of the then 29-year-old had never been found – and so far no charges had been brought in connection with her disappearance.

The indictment went back to Durst’s own testimony in the 2015 HBO documentary “The Jinx”: There, Durst appeared to confess to several murders. He went to the bathroom while still carrying the microphone on and said, “You got caught! What the fuck did i do? Killed them all, of course, ”he said. However, according to media reports, the transcripts of the sound recordings in court showed that the quotes had been merged and edited to put them in a different order and context.

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