Alex Murdaugh sentenced to 27 years for thefts, tax evasion

Alex Murdaugh sentence overview: 

• Who: A judge sentenced Alex Murdaugh, a former lawyer convicted in the murders of his wife and son, to 27 years after he pled guilty to theft and tax evasion.
• Why: Murdaugh was accused of stealing $12.4 million from his law partners and clients and not paying taxes on his earnings.
• Where: The Murdaugh sentence came in South Carolina state court.

Alex Murdaugh, a former lawyer who was convicted of the murders of his wife and son earlier this year, received a 27-year sentence after pleading guilty to thefts and tax evasion.

The sentence is in addition to previous convictions that led to a sentence of life in prison for the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul. Judge Clifton Newman of the Colleton County Circuit Court sentenced Murdaugh after hearing testimony of 20 alleged thefts over eight years, Law360 reports.

“This is a win for the victims and for justice in South Carolina,” South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said in a statement on Murdaugh’s guilty plea Nov. 16, according to ABC Columbia. “We hope the families he betrayed and stole from feel a little peace that he is going to serve time for those crimes. It doesn’t matter your last name, your position, or your connections — no one is above the law in South Carolina.”

Murdaugh allegedly stole money from clients who settled injury cases, family friends and former law partners at Peters Murdaugh Parker Eltzroth and Detrick, Law360 reports.

Murdaugh associate previously sentenced to 20 years for financial crimes 

The sentence was part of a series of legal issues for Murdaugh, his family and associates investigated by a plethora of law enforcement agencies in South Carolina related to crimes in Colleton County and beyond.

A judge previously sentenced Murdaugh’s co-conspirator Cory Fleming to 20 years in prison for financial crimes committed with Murdaugh.

“Alex Murdaugh’s house of cards, built on the foundation of lies, manipulation, and theft, came crashing down,” Wilson said in early March, at the time of Murdaugh’s guilty verdict in the murder trial, according to WCNC Charlotte. “Let this be a warning: no matter who you are, if you break the law, the truth will come out and you will be brought to justice.”

A South Carolina gas station agreed to pay $15 million in a lawsuit settlement to the family of a 19-year-old girl who died after a boat piloted by Murdaugh’s son crashed into a creek in 2019. 

Have you followed any of the trials of Alex Murdaugh and his associates? Let us know in the comments. 

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