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COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCSC/AP) - Attorneys in three civil lawsuits against Alex Murdaugh want the court to have independent representatives take control of money and other assets of the South Carolina lawyer.
The court documents in the cases say they fear Murdaugh is trying to hide millions of dollars.
They say Murdaugh is shifting money between unknown accounts and potentially selling off property after he turned all his affairs over to his surviving son.
Murdaugh’s wife, Maggie, and his youngest son, Paul, were shot to death at the family’s rural Colleton County property in June. At the time of his death, Paul Murdaugh had not yet gone to trial on charges in a fatal boat crash that killed 19-year-old Mallory Beach in 2019.
The request came from Beach’s family, someone also on that boat and the estate of Murdaugh’s late housekeeper, Gloria Satterfield.
Satterfield died at the age of 57 on Feb. 26, 2018, from injuries she suffered in what was called a “trip and fall accident” at the Murdaugh’s home.
Investigators say Murdaugh illegally diverted insurance settlements from Satterfield’s estate.
The attorneys for Satterfield’s estate say they’ve reached a settlement with Murdaugh’s former law firm Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth, and Detrick. Murdaugh announced he would resign from the firm after being accused of misappropriating funds and said he would enter rehab for opioid addiction the Monday after a weekend shooting incident in rural Hampton County which investigators say was part of an insurance fraud scheme.
Eric Bland and Ronnie Richter, who represents the Satterfield estate, have already reached a settlement with the firm and lawyer, Cory Fleming, who originally was set up to help the Satterfields after their mother died.
Bland says they still have pending lawsuits against Alex Murdaugh and Palmetto State Bank.
Copyright 2021 WCSC. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved.