Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
In 2023, the court sentenced Alex Murdaugh to prison for brutally killing his wife and son at the family’s hunting lodge in 2021. In November 2023, he also pleaded guilty to stealing money from his clients. Now, almost seven months later, the court finally sentenced Murdaugh to prison for committing several financial crimes.
As per FOX News, the court sentenced Alex Murdaugh to 40 years in prison for stealing money from his clients. The outlet mentioned that the court ordered the convicted killer to pay $9 million in mandatory restitution. However, the judge waived the fee and told the culprit to pay $2,000 in special assessment because the defendant didn’t have the money to pay the restitution. During the sentencing, Murdaugh apologized to his clients and felt guilty about what he did.
The lawyer also noted that he felt dejected about what he did. Murdaugh said, “I do want you to know and all of the victims to know I am filled with sorrow. I am filled with remorse. I am filled with guilt.”
The aforementioned sentence comes almost five months after Alex Murdaugh pleaded guilty to multiple federal financial crimes. The culprit pleaded guilty to 22 counts, including money laundering, breach of trust, and financial fraud. Per CNN, Murdaugh took a plea deal in exchange for a 27-year sentence.
At the time, Murdaugh admitted to taking the money from his clients. He also said he is glad to have the opportunity to plead guilty to his crimes. During the hearing in November 2023, Murduagh said, “I am guilty and I believe I will be found guilty. I’m glad to finally be given the opportunity to plead guilty.”
Where is Alex Murdaugh now?
As mentioned above, the court sentenced Alex Murdaugh to 40 years in prison for financial crimes. However, this is not Murdaugh’s first appearance in court for his crimes. NBC News reported that in 2022, a grand jury indicted Murdaugh for the brutal murders of Paul and Margaret Murdaugh. Authorities charged him after Murdaugh revealed that an unknown assailant attacked him, leading to an investigation into the shooting incident. Subsequently, police released a statement saying Murdaugh “arranged for a man to kill him.”
The outlet also indicated that he staged everything so his older son, Buster Murdaugh, could get a $10 million life insurance policy. Finally, on September 16, 2021, Alex Murdaugh surrendered. In 2022, authorities charged him on double murder charges. Initially, he denied any involvement in the murders and pleaded not guilty to the murder charges. As per Newsweek, Murdaugh killed his wife and son to “gain sympathy.” According to the news publication, the death of his family members might have given him the time to cover his previous crimes.
Prosecutors believed that Alex Murdaugh killed two of his family members to evade accountability for his financial crimes. During the trial, the prosecution team played an unseen video in the court. In the video, people could hear the voices of Alex, Paul, and Margaret. NBC News reported that the video proved that Murdaugh lied to police when he initially said about his whereabouts during the crime.
Murdaugh is in a maximum security prison in South Carolina
Alex Murdaugh also took the stand during the trial and noted that he didn’t kill his wife and son. On March 2, 2023, the jury began their deliberations, following which they found Murdaugh guilty of murder in the deaths of Margaret and Paul, per NBC News. The court sentenced him to life in prison. According to WLTX News, Alex Murdaugh is currently in a maximum security prison in South Carolina.
Netflix documentary Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal unravels the mystery behind Alex Murdaugh’s crimes and how he tried to evade the authorities. The documentary is now available to stream on the streaming platform.
