Policy- A woman from Utah was arrested Monday for fatally poisoning her husband last year, officials said.
- Kouri Darden Richins fixed her husband a cocktail spiked with fentanyl, court documents show.
A Utah woman who wrote a children's book about how to cope with grief after her husband's death has been charged with his murder, according to multiple reports.
Kouri Richins, of Summit County, Utah, was arrested on Monday for fatally poisoning her husband, Eric Richins, in their home on March 4, 2022, CBS-affiliated TV station KUTV reported.
In court documents filed on Monday, investigators said that on the night of his death, Richins had fixed her husband a Moscow Mule spiked with fentanyl that was "approximately five times the lethal dosage."
The mother-of-three told investigators that she made him a cocktail to celebrate closing on her house for a business. After giving him the drink in bed, she said she fell asleep with one of her children in a separate room because the child was having "night terrors," the documents said.
When she woke up, she said she found her husband "cold to the touch" and called 911. Upon their arrival, police found Eric lying at the foot of the bed, and he was declared dead at the scene, according to the documents.
Investigators said that Richins bought 15 to 30 fentanyl pills through an acquaintance for $900.
The acquaintance told investigators that Kouri later said she "asked for 'some of the Michael Jackson stuff,'" the documents said.
Eric had told friends before his death that he thought his wife was trying to poison him, according to court documents cited by National Public Radio affiliate KPCW. The report stated that he changed the beneficiary of his will and his power of attorney to replace his wife with his sister.
KPCW reported that the couple had argued about a $2 million home that Richins wanted to buy, but which Eric thought was expensive.
Richins has been charged with first-degree aggravated murder and three counts of second-degree possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, the documents show.
After her husband's death, Richins wrote a children's book titled "Are You with Me?" which was published on March 5.
While promoting her book on a local television show in April, Richins said that it was supposed to help children who lost a relative "find happiness some way or another."
"My husband passed away unexpectedly last year ... it completely took us all by shock," she told Good Things Utah.
"I'm trying to understand not only how to grieve as a widow, as a wife, but also with my kids, how to help them understand what just happened," she added.
A book description on Amazon also reads: "Written by a loving mother who personally faced this challenge, this book is designed to offer comfort and solace to young minds in a way that is both accessible and engaging."
Richins's lawyer did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.