South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh will reportedly be charged with murder soon in last year’s unsolved slayings of his wife and son.
Sources told FITS News that charges against Murdaugh are expected to come this week. The State Law Enforcement Division will reportedly present its case to a grand jury.
A lawyer close to the case said the state grand jury has heard a “lot of testimony” regarding Murdaugh — who is already facing dozens of charges concerning financial fraud. The testimony also included information about Maggie and Paul Murdaugh’s murders.
On June 7, 2021, Maggie and Paul were found fatally shot at their family’s 1,770-acre lodge in Colleton County. No arrests have been made in connection with their slayings. At the time of his death, Paul was awaiting trial on boating under the influence charges for a February 2019 crash that killed Mallory Beach, 19.
In regards to an alibi, Alex has claimed he was at his parents’ home in Varnville, which is 20 minutes from where his wife and son were killed.
In October 2021, months after the double homicide, Alex was arrested for allegedly stealing $4.3 million from the estate of his former housekeeper, Gloria Satterfield, who suffered a fatal fall on his property in February 2018. In that case, he is accused of stealing insurance payouts that were intended for Satterfield’s family. Authorities recently announced plans to exhume Satterfield’s body amid an ongoing probe.
At the time of his arrest in October, Alex was out on bail and undergoing treatment at a rehabilitation center in Florida. Murdaugh went to Florida after he survived an alleged suicide-for-hire plot that entailed a client shooting him in the head so his surviving son would receive a $10 million life insurance payout.
The alleged suicide attempt, which occurred on September 3, 2021, resulted in Alex being charged with insurance fraud.
A day before the shooting, Alex was forced out of his family law firm amid allegations he misappropriated funds. He announced he was entering rehabilitation for drugs two days after the shooting
Since then, Murdaugh has been charged with 74 counts, as he has been accused of stealing money from a slew of clients and his former law firm.
In June, South Carolina Supreme Court suspended Alex’s law license for allegedly stealing funds from his former law firm. Since then, Alex waived his right to a hearing and said he will accept whatever penalty the court hands down — which can include disbarment.
The court wrote, “There is no factual dispute about whether Respondent engaged in dishonest conduct. Respondent’s admissions in the criminal proceedings that he engaged in conduct that violates the Rules of Professional Conduct satisfies ODC’s burden of proving that same misconduct in connection with the pending disciplinary proceedings.”
Later that month, Alex and the man allegedly involved in the botched suicide-for-hire plot, Curtis Smith, 61, were indicted for allegedly purchasing and distributing oxycodone in multiple counties.
Alex remains jailed on a $7 million bond.
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[Featured image: Buster, Maggie, Paul, Alex Murdaugh/Facebook]
