Robert Durst agrees to be extradited to California

Through early January, reporters will be looking back at and following up on stories and topics that were the most popular with our readers in 2015, according to metrics on lohud.com. This story is part of that series.

Real estate heir Robert Durst agrees to be extradited to California by August on murder charge, according to Associated Press.

Multimillionaire Robert Durst has spent the better part of 50 years criss-crossing the country, sometimes on the lam, usually laying low, often with guns and plenty of cash.

Take the Tour: Travel online through Robert Durst's America

At 72, his next trip, to Los Angeles to face a murder charge, may be his last.

Durst remained in a Louisiana jail after his expected plea last Thursday to a federal gun charge was postponed to Feb. 3 due to scheduling conflicts.

The action delayed his extradition to California, where Durst is charged with murder in the 2000 execution-style slaying of his close friend, writer Susan Berman.

Authorities there suspect he wanted to silence Berman to keep her from telling Westchester investigators what she knew about the disappearance of Durst’s first wife. Kathie Durst was never seen again after the couple argued at their South Salem home the night of Jan. 31, 1982. He claimed he drove her to the Katonah train station that evening so she could stay at one of their apartments in Manhattan.

Durst also faces a $100 million lawsuit by Kathie Durst’s relatives who accuse him of killing her and denying them their right to a proper burial.

Durst was arrested at a New Orleans hotel March 14 by FBI agents. Investigators found a .38 caliber revolver in his room, which the convicted felon is not allowed to possess.

The felony stemmed from guns Durst had while on the lam in 2001 after skipping bail on a murder charge in Texas, in the killing and dismemberment of a neighbor, Morris Black. Durst was acquitted of murder in 2003 but served time in prison for possessing the guns.

His arrest this year came on the eve of the sixth and final episode of “The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst”, an HBO documentary that explored the two killings and his wife’s disappearance. At the end, Durst is confronted by filmmaker Andrew Jarecki with handwriting on an envelope he sent Berman that bears a striking resemblance to an anonymous note police received directing them to a “cadaver” at Berman’s home after she was slain just before Christmas 2000.

Moments later he ended the interview and went to the bathroom. But his microphone was still on and he could be heard saying: "There it is. You're caught…What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course."

Twitter: @jonbandler