Really good article here.
The Unraveling of the Murdaugh Dynasty: Unsolved Murders, Insurance Fraud and Missing Millions
Unraveling
By the late spring of 2021, Randolph Murdaugh III was sick with cancer and his health was deteriorating, according to people familiar with the family.
Buster had been kicked out of law school for plagiarism, according to court records.
Paul, who was out on bond, had continued to have minor run-ins with law enforcement, including a speeding ticket and a boating violation.
After more than two years, the wrongful death suit of Ms. Beach was coming to a head,
with a hearing scheduled for June 10. A judge was expected to consider a motion by Mr. Tinsley to compel Alex Murdaugh to turn over his financial statements.
Three days before the hearing, Alex Murdaugh was with his father at the hospital. According to a person close to the family,
he came back to Moselle, took a nap and when he awoke, he left to check on his mother, who suffers from dementia. He didn’t see Maggie and Paul before he left, according to the person.
At 10:07 p.m. on June 7, Alex Murdaugh called 911 from Moselle, saying he had just arrived back home. “I need the police and ambulance immediately!” he said, according to a recording of the call. “My wife and child have been shot badly!”
Mr. Murdaugh stayed on the line with a dispatcher, who told him not to touch the bodies. He said it was too late. “I already touched them to see if they were breathing,” he said.
Deputies arrived roughly 20 minutes after the 911 call, followed by state law enforcement officers.
Paul was
shot in the chest and head, according to his death certificate. He was shot at
close range with a shotgun, according to a person familiar with the investigation.
Maggie was shot multiple times, including in the back, with a different gun, and cases of a type of ammunition known as 300 Blackout were found nearby, according to two people familiar with the situation. The family owned an AR-15 style rifle that can use that type of ammunition but it
wasn’t recovered at the scene or turned over for inspection, the people said.
On June 10, less than 72 hours after the murders, family patriarch Randolph Murdaugh III died at age 81. Law enforcement vehicles from nearly every regional agency filled the funeral procession three days later as a sign of respect.
In the double murder case, investigators have released no suspect sketches, held no news conferences, and said, without explanation, that there is no threat to the public.
Mr. Harpootlian said Mr. Murdaugh had nothing whatsoever to do with the murders of his wife and son. “The only violence he’s ever been involved with is this, which was to have himself executed,” he said in court.
