Author Kouri Richins fought with husband over $2 million mansion before alleged poisoning

A Utah author who penned a children’s book about coping with grief after she allegedly poisoned her husband was arguing with him about flipping a $2 million mansion before his murder.

Accused killer Kouri Richins, a licensed real estate sales agent, was determined to purchase an unfinished 22,000-square-foot home in Heber City — but her husband, Eric Richins, wasn’t keen on footing the hefty bill, according to court documents obtained by KPCW.

On the night of March 3, 2022, prosecutors said Kouri mixed her a Moscow Mule and gave it to her husband in bed at their home in Kamas. She then left him alone and slept with one of their young children. When she returned around 3 a.m., Eric was cold to the touch and unresponsive, prompting her to call 911.

He was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later.

Kouri subsequently claimed she and her husband were celebrating a deal she’d just made through her real estate business. Just days later on March 5 of the same year, she closed on the multimillion-dollar property.

“She later invited her friends over for a large party at her home where she was drinking and celebrating,” according to an affidavit obtained by the Salt Lake Tribune.

Kouri put the mansion back on the market just two weeks later in a bid to flipping it for nearly $5 million. It is currently under contract for $3.75 million, realtor Mike Malmrose told KPCW.

The year before his death, Eric altered his will, switching his power of attorney from his wife to his sister. He allegedly told his sister he was worried Kouri “would kill him for money and he wanted to make sure the kids were taken care of financially,” the documents say. His family members further claimed he planned to tell Kouri they were not buying the mansion and that she was being cut out of his will.

Kouri was arrested earlier this week and charged with one count of first-degree aggravated murder and three counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute in connection with the death of her husband. Citing the medical examiner, prosecutors said he died of a fentanyl overdose.

According to his autopsy, he had approximately five times the lethal amount in his system.

Months before her arrest, Kouri was making the rounds on television to promote her book, “Are You With Me?” It centers on her trying to help her three children handle the grief that came with losing their father.