In a shocking flip of occasions, a South Carolina man was charged Tuesday with capturing troubled lawyer Alex Murdaugh within the head in an assisted-suicide plot to safe $10 million in insurance coverage cash—simply three months after Murdaugh’s spouse and son had been murdered.
The alleged conspiracy was specified by courtroom paperwork launched after Curtis Edward Smith, 61, was collared for the botched Sept. 4 capturing, which Murdaugh, 53, survived.
“Mr. Murdaugh provided Mr. Smith with a firearm and directed Mr. Smith to shoot him within the head,” the affidavit mentioned, including that Murdaugh hoped an insurance coverage payout would go to his sole surviving son.
The affidavit signifies that Murdaugh confessed to the scheme on Monday and named Smith because the shooter. Smith then admitted to being there and eliminating the gun, the doc says.
Smith was additionally charged with distribution of methamphetamine and possession of marijuana, the South Carolina Legislation Enforcement Division introduced.
A regulation enforcement official with direct data of the scenario advised The Each day Beast that Smith and Murdaugh knew one another and that Smith allegedly provided the lawyer with medicine. Courtroom information present Murdaugh had represented Smith in a private damage lawsuit a decade in the past.
Videos Shed New Light on Wild Boat Crash Saga Roiling South Carolina
Smith’s arrest and the fees are essentially the most astounding growth but in a saga with extra twists than a Lowcountry backroad that already included a double murder, drug addiction, and allegations of embezzlement.
Murdaugh is the scion of a robust authorized dynasty and was a accomplice within the agency Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth, Detrick, which was based by his great-grandfather.
In 2019, the clan—which managed the native prosecutor’s workplace for many years—was thrust into the headlines when Murdaugh’s son Paul was charged with a drunken boating accident that killed a younger girl.
Then in June, Alex Murdaugh found Paul, 22, and his mom Maggie, 52, shot to dying close to the canine kennels of the household’s sprawling looking property.
Because the double murder remained unsolved, Alex Murdaugh’s life appeared to spiral wildly out of control.
Two weeks in the past, he referred to as 911 from a rustic street to report that he had been shot in the head, reportedly whereas altering a tire. The circumstances had been shrouded in confusion—after which issues obtained even murkier.
Cops Turn Up Heat on Lawyer in Wild South Carolina Shooting Saga
Murdaugh immediately introduced that he was getting into rehab for drug dependancy and resigning from his regulation agency, saying that he had made “plenty of choices that I really remorse.”
That intriguing assertion was then adopted by the agency’s announcement that Murdaugh was beneath investigation for allegedly misappropriating funds—a matter that state police are additionally now probing.
Questions in regards to the capturing had been nonetheless swirling—with Murdaugh’s lawyer compelled to disclaim the superficial head wound was self-inflicted—when Smith’s arrest was introduced.
“On September 13, 2021, Mr. Murdaugh supplied a press release to SLED admitting to the scheme of getting Mr. Smith homicide him for the aim of his son accumulating a life insurance coverage coverage valued at roughly ten million {dollars},” the affidavit states.
Along with the assisted suicide and insurance coverage fraud counts, Smith was additionally charged with assault and battery and pointing a firearm. Police mentioned extra prices are anticipated and the affidavit described Murdaugh as a “co-defendant.”
—Blake Montgomery contributed reporting
Bought a tip? Ship it to The Each day Beast here
Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!
Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
