The prosecution now says that Richins has concocted lies to link her husband's death with him "getting pills & drugs from Mexico."

Kouri Richins, the Utah mother who was accused of poisoning her husband Eric with Fentanyl and then writing a book for children about dealing with grief before she died -- is now being accused by the prosecution of witness tampering.

A court filing last week via FOX 13 Now revealed that deputies discovered a six-page handwritten note written by Richins for her mother Lisa. The note contained instructions on how Lisa should convince her brother Ronald, who is her sister, to testify in her favor. According to prosecutors, she hoped that his testimony would cast suspicion on her late husband, accusing him to have gone to Mexico for drugs before his demise.

The letter began with "Walk The Dog!! The top of the letter was written in large letters. However, the rest had nothing to do canines. According to prosecutors instead, she claimed that her attorney Skye Lozaro wanted to "link Eric getting drugs and pills from Mexico," saying to her mother, "So, we need some sort of connection."

Here's what I was thinking, but you need to speak to Ronney. He'd probably have to give testimony, but it is a very short statement. He must tell Skye in the meeting next Monday," she wrote before listing what she wanted her brother tell her attorney.

"A year before Eric's death Ronney and Eric were watching football on a Sunday, and Eric was chatting with Ronney about Eric's Mexico visits. Eric told Ronney that the workers on the ranch get him pain pills and fentanyl imported from Mexico.

She wanted Ronney's claim that Eric had told him to not tell her "because I wouldn't like it because I always said I thought he was high every night, and wouldn’t take care of our kids" (there are photos in my phone of Eric lying on the floor. Ronney should also have Eric's texts about getting high."

She then allegedly said she wanted her brother, Ronney, to testify that Eric had told him to hide his drugs inside an allergy pill container in his truck, so no one would find them. Then, she claimed Eric would conceal his drugs within Kouri's luggage whenever they traveled together, "that way, if they got caught, Kouri would get in trouble and not him." According to prosecutors, she also wanted Ronney's sister to testify that "she has never taken any kind of pill and doesn't enjoy them."

Just include it all*" the letter allegedly read. The letter read, "Just include it all*". "The link has to be established between Mexico and drugs. Ronney has the messages that prove Eric confided to him about getting high. It is important to get the message across.

Kouri wrote that she was worried about the bugging of her mom's home and phone, and asked her mother to personally meet Ronney. "Tell Ronney I need him do this. Bring me home, and we'll get these damn bitches! Prosecutors claim that she yelled out.

According to Daily Beast Kouri allegedly also gave instructions as to what her inner circle, who were being interviewed by Good Morning America about her husband, should say.

It is claimed that she instructed her mother to tell someone to say Eric would "bragging to her how much he used to drink and take pills in highschool," along with the allegation of him putting drugs into Kouri's luggage before trips. Kouri is said to have told someone that her late husband's sister were "jealous" of her because she could do anything better than them.

She wanted someone to tell GMA that "everything she had was what they wanted." This comes down to envy, money and Eric's excessive partying, which they refuse to acknowledge, as well as an accidental overdose.

Last but not least, she allegedly asked her mother to purchase a box Crest White Strips so that her lawyer would be able to slip them to her when they visited. She wrote: "I will make sure that they cannot be found in my prison cell."

The State also stated in the Friday filing that Richins had held up another letter during a video call with her mother for her to read. They believe the letter was flushed out or destroyed. The State also asked that Richins not contact her mother or brother again, believing these letters were examples of witness tampering.

Richins' lawyer, however, claimed that the state had violated an order of silence around the case when it filed the letter. He believed this could taint a jury pool.

On March 4, 2022, paramedics were dispatched to the home Eric and Kouri Richards after receiving a report of an unresponsive man. EMS tried to revive Eric but he died at the scene. Kouri was arrested and accused by police of killing her husband. She allegedly obtained a fatal dose of fentanyl through an acquaintance.

Kouri claimed in police interviews that she had made her husband a Moscow Mule to celebrate the closing of a new house, and he consumed it while he was sleeping. She claimed that after a "night-terror" by one of their children, she went to bed with the other child. Around 3 am she returned to her bedroom with Eric and found him "cold." She called the emergency services but Eric was unable to be revived.

A subsequent autopsy confirmed that Eric had died of a fentanyl-related overdose. The medical examiner stated that the levels found in his body were "five times higher than the lethal dose."

The couple's home was searched, along with their computers and mobile phones. Authorities reportedly discovered communications between Kouri, a "friend" with a history of drug possession and a "investor who suffered a back injury" on her phone. She first inquired about "prescription medication for an investor." The documents state that after the dealer procured hydrocodone from Kouri, she contacted him two weeks later to ask for "some Michael Jackson stuff," and then requested fentanyl. She paid $900 on February 11, 2020 for 15-30 pills.

Eric allegedly became "very ill" on February 14, Valentine's Day after eating with his wife. He reportedly "thought he was poisoned at the time" and "even told a friend he believed his wife tried to poison him." Kouri was then reported to have sought out even more fentanyl tablets on February 26, 2022... before Eric died of an overdose 6 days later.

Kouri was busy in the months before her arrest promoting her book for children, "Are You With Me? The book, "Are You with Me? ", was released on March 6, 2023. According to its Amazon listing, it "gently guides kids through the painful experience of losing someone they love."

Amazon has removed the listing.

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Title: Jail Cell Letter Leads to Witness Tampering Allegations for Grief Writer Accused of Killing Husband
Sourced From: www.toofab.com/2023/09/18/kouri-richins-letter-from-jail-witness-tampering-allegation/
Published Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2023 17:10:26 +0000

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