Real estate heir and alleged serial killer Robert Durst died while in custody, In Touch confirmed on January 10, 2021, after he was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his friend Susan Berman in 2000, a judge ruled on October 14, 2021.
Durst was previously found guilty of the murder in September 2021, after a jury convicted him of first-degree murder after three days of deliberation following a five-month trial.
Durst’s suspected criminal history dated back to the disappearance of his first wife, Kathleen McCormack, in 1982. The former health food store owner came from a wealthy family — but exactly how much was he worth?
Durst was personally estimated to be worth an incredible $65 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. However, his finances were a bit complicated. Here’s what we know.
Durst’s Net Worth Was a Contested Figure
According to the L.A. Times, Durst’s net worth was listed as $100 million on the Los Angeles Police Department’s official arrest warrant. However, it stands to reason that he would have spent some serious cash on his legal defense, considering he was officially detained in 2015. He was arrested in a New Orleans hotel just one day before the finale of the HBO docuseries The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst aired on March 15, 2015 — and he remained in police custody until his death.
Durst’s Family Is One of the Wealthiest in the United States
Durst was the son of late New York real estate mogul Seymour Durst and brother of commercial developer Douglas Durst. According to Forbes, the Durst family is estimated to be worth an astounding $8.1 billion altogether when taking into account their more than “16 million-square-foot of real estate in New York and Philadelphia, including a 10 percent stake in One World Trade Center.”
The Durst Organization was founded in 1915 by Durst’s grandfather, Joseph Durst, who immigrated from Poland in 1903.
In 2006, Durst’s family bought him out of his stake in the family business for $65 million. The decision came six years after he was suspected of killing Berman, whom the prosecution argued was murdered in Durst’s effort to cover up his involvement in his wife’s disappearance.
When investigators reopened McCormack’s case in 2000, they were determined to interview Berman about Durst. However, she was found dead in her Los Angeles home days before investigators were scheduled to meet with her. Her murder was classified as an execution-style murder, meaning the perpetration commits the crime at a close range on a conscious victim.
Durst denied all allegations against him.