On Monday, a South Carolina agent recalled what murder suspect Alex Murdaugh said upon seeing pictures of his slain wife and son’s bodies on their family property.
Scant crime scene photos were initially shown in Colleton County court Friday, while SLED forensic analyst Melinda Worley testified that she arrived at the crime scene at the family’s estate in Islandton on June 8, 2021, at around 12:07 a.m.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, the trial continued Monday with SLED agent Jeff Croft alleging that Alex Murdaugh cried, “It was so bad. I did him so bad,” after being presented with the graphic photos. Alex Mrudaugh reportedly mouthed in court afterward that it was not what he said, per reporter Cathy Russon.
Prosecutors alleged Murdaugh shot his son 22-year-old son, Paul, at close range with a shotgun. He then allegedly shot his wife, Maggie, with a rifle.
Alex Murdaugh is believed to have acted alone in the 2021 slayings. He was reportedly filmed driving away from the lodge an hour before he called 911 to report their deaths.
Rutland also testified that she saw no blood on Alex — including on his shoes and hands.
SLED agent Melinda Worley said she swabbed 10 different areas in Alex’s car and all of them returned presumptive positive results. She said she also photographed a 16-gauge shotgun shell located on the rear floorboard of his vehicle.
Meanwhile, Murdaugh’s attorney, Dick Harpootlian, said the cell phone records were incomplete and asserted that Alex would be covered in blood if he killed his wife and son at close range. Harpootlian said no blood was found on Alex’s clothing.
In September 2021, months after Paul and Maggie’s slayings, Alex suffered superficial head wounds when he allegedly had former client Curtis Smith, 61, shoot him in the head so his surviving son, Buster, would receive a $10 million insurance payout.
A day before the shooting, Alex was forced out of his family law firm amid allegations he misappropriated funds.
Two days after the apparent botched suicide, Alex announced he was entering rehabilitation for drugs. Shortly thereafter, he was charged with insurance fraud in connection with the September 2021 suicide-for-hire plot and released on bail.
However, in October 2021, Alex was rearrested upon leaving a rehabilitation center in Florida 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 was accused of stealing insurance payouts that were intended for Satterfield’s family. Authorities plan to exhume her body amid an ongoing investigation regarding her death.
In addition to the murder charges, Alex faces more than 100 criminal counts related to fraud.
In June 2022, Alex and Smith were indicted for allegedly purchasing and distributing oxycodone in multiple counties. In December 2022, Alex was indicted for tax evasion for allegedly failing to claim the $6 million he allegedly earned through illegal acts between 2011 and 2019.
Alex was charged with Maggie and Paul’s murders days after he was formally disbarred by the South Carolina Supreme Court.
Grace Beahm Alford/The Post and Courier/Pool
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[Featured image: Former Hampton attorney Alex Murdaugh walks in the Colleton County Courthouse during the first day of jury selection in Walterboro, S.C. Monday, Jan. 23, 2023. (Grace Beahm Alford/The Post And Courier via AP, Pool)]
Additional reporting by Jacquelyn Gray
