Support for LAist comes from
Local and national news, NPR, things to do, food recommendations and guides to Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire
Stay Connected
Listen

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

Arts and Entertainment

Robert Durst's Escape Plan: Latex Mask Disguise And Fake ID

Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.

When police arrested Robert Durst in New Orleans on Saturday for the 2000 murder of his friend, it looked like he was on the lam. The wealthy New York real estate scion was donning a rubber latex mask as a disguise, using a fake ID and had more than $42,000 in cash.

In Durst's JW Marriott hotel room, police found that he had a phony Texas ID with the name Everette Ward, according to an affidavit TMZ got their hands on. The $42,000 in cash was separated into $100 bills in different small envelopes, which authorities believed he was planning on sending to himself while on the run. Durst, 71, told police that he was planning to ship a large amount of money. They also found a .38 Smith & Wesson revolver and weed in his room.

When Durst was arrested, the FBI said they believed that Durst may have been trying to flee to Cuba. The first flight directly to the island from New Orleans in over 50 years took off on Saturday.

The affidavit came from a search warrant Houston police filed to search Durst's home, according to NBC News. When authorities searched the house on Tuesday, they left with two cardboard document boxes. According to TMZ, during their search they found two copies of "A Deadly Secret: The Strange Disappearance of Kathie Durst," a book that details the mysterious disappearance of his wife in 1982.

Support for LAist comes from

Durst was charged on Monday for the 2000 shooting death of Susan Berman in her Beverly Hills home. Her death has been shrouded in mystery up until now. There was renewed interest in her case after HBO's The Jinx aired. The docuseries focuses on the cases Durst has been linked to: the murder of Berman, the 2001 grisly death of his Galveston, TX neighbor Morris Black, and the mysterious 1982 disappearance of his wife, Kathleen Durst.

He could also be connected to the disappearance of two Northern California teens in 1997.

Since Durst's arrest, he had been held without bail in a Louisiana jail, in preparation to be extradited to Los Angeles to stand trial for Berman's murder. He could face the death penalty. Durst has since been moved to a prison for the mentally ill after he was found to be suicidal.

As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.

Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.

We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.

Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.

Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

Chip in now to fund your local journalism
A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right
(
LAist
)

Trending on LAist