Larry Rudolph, the multi-millionaire dentist who’s accused of murdering his wife Bianca on a 2016 hunting trip in Zambia and framing it as an accident to bank millions in insurance cash, testified in federal court Wednesday for the first time.
Rudolph vehemently denied accusations he killed his wife to receive a $4.8 million payout and finally be with his supposed lover, Lori Milliron, who faces an obstruction of justice charge herself.
Defense attorneys claim the ordeal was a tragic accident, with Bianca mistakenly shooting herself around 5 a.m. on Oct. 11, 2016, as she frantically packed a loaded gun into its case to return to Pittsburgh for a family wedding.
Rudolph recounted that morning Wednesday. The last words he heard from his wife were, “‘come here and help me,’” he said, followed by a gunshot soon after.
“I absolutely did not shoot my wife,” Rudolph said. “I did not murder my wife for insurance. I did not murder my wife to be with Lori Milliron or anyone else.”
Dentist Accused of Murdering Wife on Africa Hunting Safari for Insurance Cash
The feds have dismissed Rudolph’s story, claiming the millionaire carefully planned his wife’s slaying with a clear motive: further filling his pockets while freeing himself up for more time with his mistress.
Prosecutors are attempting to convict Rudolph on murder and fraud charges, despite local authorities in Zambia declaring Bianca’s death an accident, a conclusion life insurance investigators also reached.
But the feds insist they have enough evidence to put Rudolph away. For one, prosecutors claim it would have been impossible for Bianca to shoot herself in the chest with the shotgun responsible for her death because its barrel is too long. They also cite Rudolph’s actions after his wife’s death, which included a trip to Vegas just after her burial, as well as dates with Milliron.
On one outing with Milliron, the feds say a witness overheard Rudolph say “I fucking killed my wife for you” in 2020. Rudolph claims he was a misheard while dining in a busy restaurant, with him actually saying: “The FBI think I killed my wife for you,” Rudolph testified Wednesday.
Rudolph, 67, spent two-and-a-half hours in total on the stand, detailing his relationship with Bianca, from when they met in college in the early 80s to their marriage struggles, as they nearly divorced twice.
The couple switched to an open relationship around 2000, Rudolph testified, which eased tension between the two, the Associated Press reported. After that, Rudolph said he and Bianca were “reasonably happy” with their arrangement.
The couple’s grown children attended Wednesday’s hearing, sitting on their father’s side to support him, the Denver Gazette reported.
Wednesday’s testimony likely won’t be the last time Rudolph takes the stand. Prosecutors requested two hours to question him about a “mysterious crocodile attack” on Thursday.
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