Robert Durst's Story, Explained: From Real Estate Millionaire to Murderer

Everything you wanted to know about the man linked to two murders and one mysterious disappearance — and the focus of HBO’s ‘The Jinx’

When Kathleen "Kathie" McCormack vanished in 1982, all eyes were on her husband, real estate heir Robert Durst.

Eighteen years after Kathie’s disappearance, Durst’s best friend was found dead in 2000; one year later, the body parts of his neighbor were discovered drifting in a Texas bay. In all three cases, Durst was a suspect.

In an effort to uncover his apparent connection to these tragedies, HBO released the six-part docuseries The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst in February and March of 2015, wherein Durst made a harrowing revelation: "I am complicit in Kathie not being here."

Though he claimed he had nothing to do with her going missing, a confession over a hot mic of “What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course.” changed everything.

The Jinx: Part Two — premiering April 21 on HBO and then streaming on Max — picks up where the season 1 finale left off, leading to an arrest and conviction, years in the making.

Here’s what you need to know about Robert Durst and the murder cases that made him infamous.

January 31, 1982: Durst's Wife, Kathie, Disappears

A former wealthy scion of a prominent New York real estate family, Durst became a tabloid fixture after Kathie suddenly went missing at age 29 on Jan. 31, 1982. At the time, Durst had told police they'd argued before she left their country home in Westchester County, N.Y., for their New York City apartment. Five days later, however, he reported her missing.

December 24, 2000: Durst's Friend Susan is Murdered

Susan Berman, a longtime friend of Durst’s who often acted as his spokesperson following the situation with Kathie, was found dead on Christmas Eve 2000 after having been shot execution-style in her Los Angeles home. According to a season 1 episode of The Jinx, police had planned to speak to Berman about her knowledge of Kathie’s disappearance. (Police also received a letter days after the murder with Berman's address and the word "cadaver.")

November 2001: Durst is Charged with Another Murder

After the dismembered body of 71-year-old Morris Black was found floating in Galveston Bay, Texas, on Sept. 30, 2001, police zeroed in on his neighbor, who often clashed with Black, and discovered it was none other than Durst, living undercover as a mute woman.

As The New York Times reported, Durst was initially arrested on Oct. 9 of that year but went on the lam for two months after posting a $250,000 bond. When he was finally found (after being caught stealing a sandwich), Durst was arrested and charged with Black’s murder.

November 2003: He's Acquitted of Black's Murder

A Texas jury believed Durst's claim that he killed Black in self-defense and subsequently disposed of the body in a panic. After pleading guilty to bond jumping and evidence tampering relating to the disposal of Black's body, Durst was sentenced to five years.

December 3, 2010: The Saga Hits the Big Screen

Ryan Gosling played a thinly fictionalized version of Durst in All Good Things (2010), directed by Andrew Jarecki. "He’s a very complicated guy. He either did or he didn't," Gosling told the Los Angeles Times. "And even if all of it or none of it or some of it might be true, there’s just no way to really know."

February 2015: The Jinx Airs on HBO … and Durst Confesses?

After Jarecki's movie, Durst agreed to share his side of the story for HBO’s gripping docuseries The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst, also directed by Jarecki. In the chilling finale, Durst walks into a bathroom, seemingly unaware he is still miked, and mumbles, "What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course."

March 14, 2015: Durst is Arrested for Berman's Murder

The evening before the finale of The Jinx aired on March 15, 2015, Durst was caught checking into a New Orleans hotel under a pseudonym and arrested on a charge of first-degree murder in the shooting of Berman.

Judge Susan Criss, who sat on the bench in 2003 when Durst was acquitted of his neighbor’s murder, told PEOPLE of the then-upcoming trial, "I hope everyone's got their act together and nobody drops the ball this time. There's a lot riding on this."

September 17, 2021: Durst is Convicted of Berman’s Killing

Although Durst’s trial for Berman’s murder officially began in California in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic postponed the trial until it resumed in May 2021. Additional delays happened due to Durst’s ongoing health issues, and his lawyers unsuccessfully asked the judge for a mistrial because of his medical condition.

Amid the trial, during which more than 100 people testified, including filmmakers behind The Jinx, prosecutors alleged Durst killed Berman — a writer and daughter of a Las Vegas mob boss — for knowing too much about the disappearance of his first wife, Kathie, in 1982.

On Sept. 17, 2021, more than two decades after Berman’s death, Durst was convicted of her murder by a Los Angeles jury.

November 2021: Kathie’s Family Reacts to Durst’s Conviction

"Not a single day goes by that we do not think about our beautiful, smart, and kind sister, Kathleen,” Kathie’s family said in a statement following Durst’s first-degree murder conviction. “Today, more than ever before, it is clear that she was murdered by Robert Durst in Westchester County, New York, on Jan. 31, 1982. The evidence is overwhelming.”

They continued: "Although Durst has now been rightly convicted of killing Susan Berman, who helped him conceal the truth about Kathie's death, the McCormack family is still waiting for justice. Kathie is still waiting for justice.”

October 14, 2021: Durst is Sentenced for Berman’s Murder

On Oct. 14, 2021, Durst, then 78, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing Berman in 2000.

October 2021: Durst is Charged with Murdering Kathie

A week after being sentenced to life in prison for murdering Berman, authorities in New York charged Durst with second-degree murder in connection with the supposed death of his first wife, Kathie, who went missing in 1982 and whose remains have yet to be found.

January 10, 2022: Durst Dies in Prison

On Jan. 10, 2022, mere months after being convicted of Berman’s death and facing a separate murder charge associated with his first wife Kathie’s disappearance 40 years prior, Durst died from cardiac arrest while in custody at age 78.

"Mr. Durst passed away early this morning while in the custody of California's Department of Corrections," Chip Lewis, one of Durst's attorneys, told PEOPLE in a statement. "We understand that his death was due to natural causes associated with a litany of medical issues we had repeatedly reported to the court over the last couple of years."

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