On Nov. 1, Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah announced that Robert Durst was indicted for the murder of his first wife, Kathleen Durst, in South Salem on or about January 31, 1982.
Durst, 78, was charged by a Westchester County Grand Jury in an indictment on November 1, 2021, with Murder in the Second Degree. Durst previously was charged in a complaint filed on October 19, 2021, with Murder in the Second Degree.
“When Kathleen Durst disappeared on January 31, 1982, her family and friends were left with pain, anguish and questions that have contributed to their unfaltering pursuit of justice for the last 39 years,” DA Rocah said. “The District Attorney’s Office reinvigorated its investigation into Robert Durst just 10 months ago when I took Office, launched the Cold Case Bureau, and dedicated the resources and skill that I thought this case deserved. Thanks to the incredible hard work of our Assistant District Attorneys, the District Attorney’s Criminal Investigators and the New York State Police, we have taken a huge step forward in the pursuit of justice for Kathie Durst, her family and victims of domestic violence everywhere.”
The investigation was handled by the Cold Case Bureau, which was established in January to help work towards solving cases and giving closure to families of homicide victims. Cold Case Bureau Chief Laura Murphy, who is assisted by Chief Investigator Daniel McKenna, leads the Bureau. They work collaboratively with other Criminal Investigators in the District Attorney’s Office, the FBI, the Westchester County Department of Public Safety, and law enforcement agencies from across the country.
The investigation into the disappearance and alleged murder of 29-year-old Kathleen Durst was a collaborative effort by the Cold Case Bureau, the District Attorney’s Criminal Investigators, Bureau Chiefs Nadine Nagler and Maria Wager, New York State Police Investigator Joseph Becerra, and other members of the New York State Police and the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office also assisted in the investigation.
“For nearly four decades there has been a great deal of speculation about this case, much of it fueled by Robert Durst’s own highly publicized statements,” DA Rocah said. “An indictment is a crucial step in the process of holding wrongdoers accountable for their actions.”
A warrant has been issued for Robert Durst’s arrest for the murder of Kathleen Durst.
On Oct. 22, NY State Police Investigator Joseph Becerra filed a felony complaint againt Durst charging him with murder at the Lewisboro Town Court. That complaint was made apparently to charge Durst before his death, in case DA Rocah was not able to secure an indictment in time.
Durst is in a California prison hosptial and is gravely ill. The family of Kathleen Durst were pleased that the complaint was filed last month, and the progress that DA Rocah made in securing an indictment.
