"Everyone was killed..." US Real Estate Tycoon Confesses Crime Unaware Microphone Was On

Dust appeared in court sitting in a wheelchair last May. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] A man in his 70s, an American real estate tycoon heir accused of murdering his wife and three friends, has been found guilty.

Robert Durst (78), who had evaded the law for 21 years, was caught after unknowingly confessing to the serial murders in a monologue during the filming of a documentary by a U.S. broadcaster while his microphone was still on.

According to foreign media including the BBC on the 18th (local time), the jury at a California state trial court ruled that Durst was guilty of first-degree murder for killing his longtime friend Susan Berman (then 55) in 2000.

This is the first guilty verdict he has received after being suspected of killing three people in three states over 39 years. Following this verdict, Durst is expected to be sentenced to life imprisonment without parole at the sentencing hearing scheduled for the 18th of next month.

Durst, who is currently incarcerated, was unable to attend the court hearing as he was quarantined after contact with a COVID-19 positive individual.

Durst had been accused of killing Berman to cover up his crime related to the disappearance of his wife, Kathleen McCormack Durst. At that time, Berman was found dead from a gunshot wound to the head at her home in Los Angeles.

The prosecution judged that Durst killed Berman because she told others that he helped cover up Kathleen’s murder.

In addition, Durst has been suspected of killing three people: his wife Kathleen, a 29-year-old medical student who disappeared in 1982; and his neighbor Morris Black, who discovered Durst’s identity while he was on the run in Texas in 2001.

However, Durst was not charged with the murder of his wife Kathleen. Although he was charged with killing neighbor Black, he was acquitted after admitting to dismembering Black’s body and dumping it in the sea, as it was recognized as self-defense during a physical altercation.

Meanwhile, after this guilty verdict, Kathleen’s family issued a statement urging the New York State prosecutors to indict Durst for Kathleen’s murder. Durst is the grandson of Joseph Durst, founder of the large New York real estate company 'Durst Organization,' and the son of Seymour Durst.

Durst, who had long evaded the law, was ultimately exposed for his crimes after confessing in a monologue during the filming of a documentary about his life and criminal allegations.

After the interview filming ended, Durst muttered to himself in the bathroom, "What the hell have I done? Of course, I killed them all." It is known that he was unaware the microphone was on at the time, but the prosecution considered this a confession.