‘I killed them all’ says US millionaire in TV admission

Robert Durst has been questioned in connection with the disappearance and death of his wife Kathleen Durst in 1982, and over the murder of his friend Susan Berman in 2000. Now he has agreed to be sent to Los Angeles to face a charge of first-degree murder over Berman’s death.

The millionaire is estranged from his family, who own eleven of New York’s most famous skyscrapers, and are involved in developing the site of the World Trade Center. He was arrested at the request of Los Angeles authorities by FBI agents on Saturday in the lobby of a Marriot hotel in New Orleans, where he had checked in under an assumed name.

The agents reportedly observed the real estate tycoon mumbling to himself and wandering aimlessly around the lobby before they stepped in.

New evidence

Durst was the subject of an HBO documentary on the killings, The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst, and was recorded apparently admitting his involvement in the killing of Berman and his first wife.

The filmmakers said they found similarities between handwriting and spelling mistakes in two letters – one sent from Durst to Berman, and one sent anonymously to police alerting them to Berman’s dead body. Berman was shot in the head in her home in Los Angeles in 2000 as investigators prepared to interview her over the disappearance of Durst’s wife Kathleen.

What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course. Robert Durst

After being questioned over the resemblance between the two letters, the filmmakers said Durst was not aware his mic was still on when he was alone in the bathroom. He was recorded saying: “There it is. You’re caught.” There were then a few moments of muffled sounds, which the filmmakers believed was him weeping, before he said: “What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course.”

Durst has always maintained his innocence. The 71-year-old is still a suspect in the disappearance of his wife, who has been declared legally dead despite her body never being found.

In 2001, the tycoon was tried and acquitted of murdering an elderly neighbour near his home in Texas, after successfully arguing he shot, dismembered and dumped the body in an act of self-defence.

His estranged family said they were relieved and also grateful to everyone who had assisted in his arrest. His brother Douglas said: “We hope he will finally be held accountable for all he has done.”