CALDWELL, Texas — The trial of Robert Fabian is officially underway in Caldwell County.
Jury selection took place Monday for the man accused of murdering his on-again, off-again girlfriend Zuzu Verk, a student at Sul Ross State University.
Jurors in the murder trial of 25-year-old Robert Fabian heard him twice refer to Verk in the past tense during an interview with Alpine Police three days after she disappeared.
On one occasion, he told investigators she “was” an amazing woman and once that he “didn’t want to talk bad about her because she isn’t around anymore.”
Fabian is accused of killing Verk after the two argued late on Oct. 11 or early Oct. 12, 2016. Her remains were found in a shallow grave nearly four months later, and Brewster County Sheriff Donnie Dodson told the jury that when he was brought to the site, “I actually bent over the skull and said, ‘Hello Zuzu. My name’s Ronnie Dodson and I’ve been looking for you.’”
Jurors on Wednesday also heard from Verk’s brother, law enforcement, Fabian's brother-in-law and people who knew the couple.
On Tuesday, Lori Verk testified about the relationship between her daughter and Fabian, which she found troubling. She and others characterized him as possessive and jealous.
Fabian acknowledged they argued after a “romantic dinner” at his home on Oct. 11, but said she left in her car between 2 and 3 a.m. His downstairs neighbor, James Franco, had said he saw the car belonging to Verk, who was a student at Sul Ross University planning to transfer to Texas A&M, still parked outside Fabian’s home around 4 a.m.
