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Mum who wrote grief book for kids after husband died has been charged with his murder
Published 12:45 9 May 2023 BST
Updated 15:42 9 May 2023 BST
Homenews
She recently appeared on TV to promote the picture book
A woman who wrote a book for her kids to help them deal with grief following her husband's death has been charged with his murder.
Kouri Richins was arrested on Monday (May 8) in Utah, USA, and is accused of poisoning her husband and father to their children with fentanyl, a painkiller 100 times stronger than morphine.
Prosecutors say there was five times the lethal dose of fentanyl in Eric Richins' system when he died on March 2022 in the family home.
Kouri had allegedly told police she had made him a vodka drink to celebrate him selling the house, but when she returned from checking on one of their children he was "cold to the touch."
The development in the case comes after an "unnamed acquaintance" reportedly admitted to selling fentanyl to the mum, KUTV reports.
Investigators found that Richins had been in touch with a person previously charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
She had reportedly asked the person for prescription painkillers for an investor who had a back injury. After she was initially given hydrocodone pills, she got back in touch with the person around two weeks later and requested "some of the Michael Jackson stuff," asking specifically for fentanyl.
Three days after she got hold of the drug, her husband "became very ill" at a Valentine's Day dinner with Kouri, according to a probably cause statement.
Eric believed he had been poisoned and apparently told a friend that he believed it was his wife who was responsible.
Kouri is also charged with allegedly possessing GHB. This is an odourless substance that makes people drowsy or relaxed. It is often associated with 'date rape' cases, Sky News reports.
The charges come just two months after Kouri appeared on local television to promote a grief book she had written.
The book, titled 'Are You With Me?', is a picture book she had written to help her kids deal with Eric's death.
She told a segment called 'Good Things Utah' that children needed to feel that a loved one's "spirit is always alive in your home."
"It's - you know - explaining to my kid just because he's not present here with us physically, doesn't mean his presence isn't here with us," she told the programme.
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