Maggie Murdaugh, 52, and 22-year-old Paul Murdaugh were found shot to death last June on the family’s estate in Colleton County, South Carolina.
Disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh has been charged with murder in the 2021 deaths of his wife and son, authorities in South Carolina announced Thursday.
Last June, Margaret "Maggie" Murdaugh, 52, and 22-year-old Paul Murdaugh were found shot to death on the family’s hunting estate in Colleton County.
Alex Murdaugh, who comes from a prominent South Carolina legal family, has been jailed since last October on dozens of unrelated charges. They include allegations he attempted to arrange his own death so his surviving son could collect a $10 million life insurance payout and multiple alleged financial crimes.
State investigators are also probing the death of longtime Murdaugh housekeeper Gloria Satterfield, who died in 2018 in what was described as a “trip and fall accident” at the Murdaugh family home.
Prosecutors allege that Alex Murdaugh took over $4 million in wrongful-death claims from his home insurance company by saying he was negotiating for Satterfield’s family, but never actually gave them any of their settlement money. As part of the ongoing investigation, Satterfield's body was exhumed.
Last month, Alex was indicted on criminal conspiracy and drug charges for allegedly running a drug ring in Colleton County from 2013 to 2021, authorities said.
In Thursday’s murder indictment, he was also charged with possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
“Over the last 13 months, SLED [South Carolina Law Enforcement Division] agents and our partners have worked day in and day out to build a case against the person responsible for the murders of Maggie and Paul and to exclude those who were not. At no point did agents lose focus on this investigation. From the beginning I have been clear, the priority was to ensure justice was served. Today is one more step in a long process for justice for Maggie and Paul,” SLED Chief Mark Keel said in a statement.
A bond hearing has yet to be scheduled, a news release said.
Alex Murdaugh denies he was involved in the murders of his wife and son.
"It was very clear from day one that law enforcement and the Attorney General prematurely concluded that Alex was responsible for the murder of his wife and son," his lawyers said in a statement. "But we know that Alex did not have any motive whatsoever to murder them."
In total, Alex Murdaugh faces 84 criminal charges and 11 lawsuits, NBC News reported. He has previously pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him.
Alex Murdaugh was formally disbarred Wednesday by the South Carolina Supreme Court.
