Robert Durst charged in handgun case

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Robert Durst leaves federal court in an Orleans Parish sheriff’s vehicle after his arraignment April 14 in New Orleans. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Robert Durst is transported from district court to prison after his arraignment in New Orleans on Tuesday. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Robert Durst is escorted into prison after his arraignment in New Orleans on Tuesday. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Writer Susan Berman was killed in her home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Benedict Canyon. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

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Robert Durst, far right, photographed through fencing, is escorted into Orleans Parish Criminal District Court through a tunnel entrance, in New Orleans. Durst waived extradition Monday and will be taken to Los Angeles to face a murder charge in the 2000 slaying of a writer and friend. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Multi-millionaire murder defendant Robert Durst, right, is congratulated by his attorneys Dick DeGuerin, left, and Mike Ramsey after receiving a verdict of not guilty Nov. 11, 2003, in Galveston, Texas. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)

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Multi-millionaire murder defendant Robert Durst demonstrates how Morris Black handled a gun during testimony at his trial on Oct. 23, 2003, in Galveston, Texas. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)

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In this Aug. 18, 2003, file photo, Robert Durst, left, sits in a courtroom during a pretrial hearing at the Galveston County Courthouse in Galveston, Texas. (Kevin Bartram / Associated Press)

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Robert Durst, center, is escorted by Northampton County deputy sheriffs before a hearing advising Durst of his rights under extradition laws Dec. 3, 2001, in Easton, Pa. (Robert Fish / Associated Press)

By Molly Hennessy-Fiske

April 10, 2015 3:10 PM PT

Robert Durst was formally charged Friday by a federal grand jury in New Orleans with illegally possessing a handgun.

Friday’s indictment alleges Durst violated the federal gun-control act by possessing a firearm after being convicted of prior felonies.

This week, federal prosecutors filed a complaint outlining the charge, which they brought after FBI agents who stopped Durst at a hotel March 14 found a .38 revolver in his room.

Durst, 71, subject of the recent HBO documentary series “The Jinx,” now faces criminal charges in three cases. In California, he is wanted in connection with the 2000 slaying of friend Susan Berman, who was shot in the head in her Benedict Canyon home. In New Orleans, in addition to the federal charge, Durst faces two state weapons charges.

He has waived extradition to California and even offered to pay transportation costs, according to his attorneys. But prosecutors in New Orleans have fought to keep him there - and so far, they are succeeding.

Durst is being held without bond at the medical unit of Elayn Hunt Correctional Center, about 70 miles west of New Orleans. His birthday is Sunday. He is due back in federal court at 2 p.m. Tuesday. He s not expected to appear back in state court until May 7.

@mollyhf

Robert Durst charged in handgun case

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