Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - 5 Bombshells in Case of Utah Mom Accused of Poisoning Husband

Starting point is 00:00:00 Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this law and crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. So my husband passed away unexpectedly last year. So it's March 4th was a one-year anniversary for us. Corey Richens, the Utah mom and children's book author accused of murdering her husband for life insurance money. Prosecutors are laying out part of their case in new court documents. I have the bombshell details with a representative from Eric Richens' family. Thanks for joining me for Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy.

Starting point is 00:00:37 Corey Richens will be back in court this week for a two-day preliminary hearing. At that hearing, the judge will hear testimony to determine whether there's enough evidence to bound Corey Richens over for trial. Prosecutors just have to show there's probable cause that Richens committed the crimes. That's a very low bar. They're outlining some of their case in a 32-page filing. Prosecutors say Corey Richens killed Eric Richens on March 3rd or 4th of 2022 by poisoning him with fentanyl. But a month earlier, on Valentine's Day, she had tried to do the same thing, according to prosecutors, but failed. Prosecutors say Richens bought fentanyl from a person identified as Witness 4 that month. But let's go back to the very beginning of this story.

Starting point is 00:01:22 Corey and Eric Richens were married in 2013, and they had a prenuptial agreement. Corey sold real estate in South Carolina, but then opened her own real estate venture, Corey Richens Real Estate, in 2019. Richens flipped houses and funded this venture using a $250,000 home equity line of credit from a home that Eric Richens owned prior to marrying Corey. This is what prosecutors are saying in these documents. Prosecutors say it appeared on the outside that Corey Richens' real estate business was doing well, but really? They say a forensic accountant will testify that she was borrowing money at high interest rates to fund this venture.

Starting point is 00:02:01 At one point in 2021, prosecutors say Richens defaulted on a loan and was sued by Greengrass Holdings three months before Eric Richens died. And according to prosecutors, Eric Richens didn't know that Corey took out that $250,000 home equity line of credit at the time until someone at his bank told him much later. Prosecutors cite an October 2020 text message exchanged between Richens and a friend where Richens wrote, I don't know what to do. If he thinks that I owe him money, then that's fine. I'll pay whatever he thinks and then I'm out. It's getting a little out of hand. The friend asked, how much did you take out? Richens responded, a lot. The friend then asked, how long do you take out? Richens responded, a lot.

Starting point is 00:02:48 The friend then asked, how long do you think it would take to pay it back? Richens responded, $250,000. It will take me a couple of months until my investments pay out, so I just got to be top notch careful. But there's nothing more important to me than the boys and making sure custody is always going to be at least 50-50. And if he digs and digs and finds something, I don't want him hiring some expensive attorney to fight for the kids or something. Now, prosecutors say there's a really big problem with that text message. They say a forensic accountant will testify that at the time, Corey Richens didn't have any

Starting point is 00:03:22 investments that she could sell or cash in to pay back that loan. And it was over-advanced to $254,000. Remember, it was originally $250,000. On the day Eric Richens died, prosecutors say that Corey Richens owed $3.1 million. She had purchased more properties and borrowed more money, but she wasn't making any money. At the time Eric Richens died in March of 2022, prosecutors say his estate was worth $5 million and his life was insured for more than $2 million. On top of this financial mess, which sounds like an absolute nightmare, prosecutors say Corey Richens was having an affair. Prosecutors quote Witness 8, identified as saying Corey Richens feared leaving Eric Richens would be difficult and his family would use their considerable wealth to fight her for custody of the kids.

Starting point is 00:04:14 Witness 8 said in December of 2021, Richard said that it would be better if Eric was dead. The following day, prosecutors say Richens texted her paramour. I'm in love with a man that's not my husband. I want to, but I can't break up my family. It's having our cake and eating it too. I do just want to love you. Then in January of 2022, prosecutors say someone accessed a $2 million life insurance policy for the business partner of Eric Richens. This was done online, changing the beneficiary to Corey Richens and then back to Eric Richens. Prosecutors believe Corey didn't realize the policy was actually for the business partner. So she put her name in there

Starting point is 00:04:58 and then swapped it back. That same month, prosecutors say Corey consulted a divorce lawyer, but ended those talks telling her brother she didn't want half of everything, but wanted to walk away, quote, clean and free. Then prosecutors say that Corey Richens started researching illicit drugs and asking people how to get fentanyl. In late January, prosecutors say Corey Richens took out a $100,000 insurance policy on Eric Richens, forging his signature and having those documents sent to her P.O. box. Then on Valentine's Day,

Starting point is 00:05:32 prosecutors say Corey Richens poisoned takeout food that she bought for Eric Richens with fentanyl pills that a friend had purchased from someone else identified as Witness 5. Eric Richens texted a person identified as Witness 1, according to prosecutors. This person was a close friend, and it was 1.59 p.m. Quote, you almost lost me. Richens told the friend that Corey Richens had given him a sandwich with a note that he had eaten part of it and then broken out in hives, and he tried to treat himself at home with one of his kids' EpiPens and Benadryl. Then 12 minutes later, after that 1.59 p.m. text, at 2.11 p.m., Richens called another friend identified as witness too and said, quote, I think I almost died. I think my wife tried to poison me. Richens had become ill and blacked out.

Starting point is 00:06:23 The judge in the case voiced interest in those comments at a hearing this week. Take a listen. I am most acutely interested in defense's position regarding witness one and witness two, especially 1.59 p.m. for witness one and 2.11 p.m. for witness two. I'll make sure you're talking about that. Okay. Prosecutors say Eric Richens tried to text Corey that afternoon, but she didn't answer. And then she continued to plan for a life without Eric Richens. The next day, Corey Richens texted the paramour. According to prosecutors, this is all in their documents. Quote, if I were divorced right now and asked you to marry me tomorrow,

Starting point is 00:07:01 you would? And I just want to lay on the couch and cuddle you, watch a murder documentary and snuggle. The following month, prosecutors say Corey Richens carried out her ultimate goal of poisoning and killing Eric Richens. Prosecutors say Corey's cell phone showed her movements did not match the story that she told detectives about that night. Richens later wrote a children's book for her children about grief. It's just comforting to them to know that, you know, they're not living this life alone. Like dad is still here. It's just in a different way. If you are anything like me, you are always cleaning up a mess,

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Starting point is 00:08:43 You can get 15% off your first order by going to blueland.com slash crime fix. Greg Skordas is the spokesperson for Eric Riggins' family. Greg, how is the family doing leading up to this hearing? I think they're really happy right now because the case has been pending, as you know, for a year. We are finally getting to the preliminary hearing, which will be tomorrow. And the state has issued what they call a pretrial brief or a pre-hearing brief to kind of outline what their case is. It's a long document, but it really spells out the evidence that they intend to put forward, the witnesses that they intend to call. And I think it gives us all from the Eric Richens side, some consolation that the state has a very good case, some feeling that the state has put together a very strong case. And of course, we're just at the preliminary hearing stage. So the state doesn't have to show all of their cards and all of their witnesses,

Starting point is 00:09:41 but what they've shown us so far is very compelling. And I was going to ask your feelings about the brief because it is very detailed. There's a lot of information in there, a lot of text messages back and forth, witness statements. One thing the judge seemed particularly interested in, and it could be considered hearsay at trial, but would be admissible at the preliminary hearing are these phone calls that Eric Richens made in the text messages from February 14th of 2022, in which one was at 159. He tells a friend, like, you almost lost me. I think my wife tried to poison me. And then 13 minutes later, he calls somebody and explains this incident with the sandwich and things like that. And then there are all these text messages they outline with Corey Richens and her alleged lover, where she's talking about wanting to be with this person, the issues with the real estate company and being in such, you know, extreme debt. There's a lot in there, Greg, that really paints a picture of a woman who was desperate.

Starting point is 00:10:49 Right. And the irony, of course, is that this is Valentine's Day and she's literally poisoning her husband and being with her paramour at the same time. I mean, talk about the irony of this. And the state really, they had a forensic accountant go through just exactly what you said. All of the financial issues that she was having. I mean, she was upside down a million dollars or more and had other debtors coming after her. I mean, she had so many reasons to have Eric killed. And they were almost all financial. Of course, we learned recently,

Starting point is 00:11:26 like you said, about the boyfriend. That was a twist we had heard about, we thought we knew about. But maybe now hearing it straight from the horse's mouth is going to make this case even stronger as it relates to her motive, both financial and with respect to her lover. How big of an issue in the relationship? I mean, of course, there was this prenuptial agreement that is discussed in the documents. So they had the prenup. They were married in 2013. Then she starts the real estate business. She wants to buy up more properties. I mean, from the outside looking in, it looks successful, but the forensic accountant is going to testify that it wasn't successful. She's taking out these awful high interest loans. I mean, she can't

Starting point is 00:12:11 keep up with the payments. Then she wants to buy this monster property in Midway and try to flip it. And that didn't work out for her. So how big of a stressor was this whole issue of the big property in Midway as far as the family knows on the relationship? It was huge because Eric never wanted that property. It was a monstrosity. And it was obviously a very beautiful home. They call it the mansion. It was worth several million dollars. But it was in an area that wouldn't support that kind of value. It was really out of its place. And he thought that there was no way

Starting point is 00:12:48 they were going to just flip it and make a million dollars. It wasn't going to happen because that particular part of the state doesn't justify a two and a half or $3 million home. So yeah, that was a big problem. But again, she's trying to get her real estate career going. She's trying to make some money flipping houses. She was obviously horrible at it.

Starting point is 00:13:08 And he was trying to be a supportive husband, notwithstanding that she's just bleeding their accounts dry. You said that the family suspected that there was a boyfriend but didn't know about this. And the text messages appear to make it pretty clear. I mean, we're at the preliminary hearing stage. This is a very low bar that the state has to meet to get over that hurdle to be bound over for trial, probable cause. But you're saying they suspected it, but didn't know. Now you found out there was indeed a boyfriend. There was somebody else in the picture. And this person thought a divorce

Starting point is 00:13:42 was on the horizon, according to the text messages. Yeah, I mean, she made clear to the boyfriend that she needed to get out of the marriage. And there were a lot of texts between the two of them about, well, I want to make sure I can preserve my relationship with my children. I don't want to lose custody. And really a lot of conversations, not just with the boyfriend, but with her own family, that Eric was worth a lot more dead than divorced. And you stated a reason earlier, Ingenette, which is that there was a prenuptial agreement. And that prenuptial agreement provided that he had certain assets that he would get if they got divorced.

Starting point is 00:14:19 But if he died, those assets would turn over to her. So yeah, he was worth much, much more to her dead than divorced. Also, there was this talk about her taking out an extra life insurance policy for $100,000 in the time leading up to his death. So I mean, that I would assume goes to a premeditation aspect of this. She, of course, says that she didn't do this. She's pleaded not guilty. There's been some talk that maybe, you know,

Starting point is 00:14:50 the suggestion is that Eric had used drugs or accidentally overdosed. Yeah, I mean, she's pled not guilty and obviously she's presumed innocent, but Eric was not a drug user. He was a very healthy man. He was an outdoorsman. He supported

Starting point is 00:15:05 his children in their athletic endeavors as a coach. He liked the outdoors here in that part of the state, hunting and fishing. He would not have abused his body in any way. And there's no evidence that he did. I mean, there was some conversation that he had tried some gummies or something, but in terms of opioids, fentanyl, there's just no evidence to support that he ever used drugs like that. How are the kids doing, the three boys? They're with family members. They're doing very well. They're in a very loving environment. They're still in the general area where they had been raised with Eric, by all accounts, they're going to be doing just fine. And they're going to be taken care of by a loving and a very extended family in that part

Starting point is 00:15:52 of the state. Greg Skourtis, we'll be watching the hearing closely. Thank you so much for coming on. We hope to have you back. You bet. And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy. Thanks so much for being with us. I'll see you back here next time.

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Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - 5 Bombshells in Case of Utah Mom Accused of Poisoning Husband

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Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - 5 Bombshells in Case of Utah Mom Accused of Poisoning Husband

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