The Murdaugh Murders, Money & Mystery | Criminally Obsessed

(Originally published January 13, 2022)

*WARNING: This episode contains strong, uncensored adult language.*

The family of Mallory Beach has spent years searching — first quite literally searching the Lowcountry rivers and marshes for their daughter's body after the infamous crash on Alex Murdaugh's boat. Agonizing years have passed as the Beach family continues searching for justice and accountability from those responsible for Mallory's death.

Read more on the Murdaugh saga: https://abcnews4.com/murdaugh

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Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

Please consider leaving a review and a 5-star rating if you enjoy the podcast. It greatly helps spread the show to other listeners.

Follow the show on social media at @UnsolvedSCPod. That's the name to find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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CREDITS:

Anne Emerson - Host, Writer, Producer

Drew Tripp - Executive Producer

Daniel Michener - Producer, Engineer

Maxwell Harrison - Music, Voiceover Guest

KJ Morrison - Music Contributor

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

Amy Russo - Voiceover Guest

Eli Brand - Voiceover Guest

Matt Dreyer - Voiceover Guest

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

(Originally published December 16, 2021)

*WARNING: This episode contains strong, uncensored adult language.*

It's now past 2 a.m. on a foggy February morning in the coastal waters Paul Murdaugh's boat has just crashed into a bridge at a high rate of speed along Archers Creek, near the Marine Corps training base on Parris Island.

Paul, Anthony Cook and Mallory Beach have been thrown into the cold, dark water. Mallory is missing. Morgan Doughty and Connor Cook have serious injuries. Miley Altman is trying to make sense of the turmoil around her. Everyone is frantic, except seemingly Paul, whose father's boat is a wreck and whose friends are in the throes of chaos.

Precious minutes pass like hours, as 911 dispatchers and first responders struggle to pin down exactly what is going on, and where these kids are.

Help eventually arrives, and first responders find a traumatic scene. Miley, Morgan and Connor are confused, hurt and in shock. Paul is in his underwear, pleading to borrow a phone. Anthony is seething with anger, directed at Paul.

As the teens finally begin arriving at the hospital, so do Paul's father, Alex, and grandfather, Randolph. The attorneys try to gain access to the teens in their hospital beds, and witnesses say they're telling the friends what to say.

The powerful, well-known attorneys' presence serves as a roadblock in the early stages of law enforcement's investigation. What really happened? And who was driving the boat?

Read more on the Murdaugh saga: https://abcnews4.com/murdaugh

~~~~~~~~~~ 

Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

Please consider leaving a review and a 5-star rating if you enjoy the podcast. It greatly helps spread the show to other listeners.

Follow the show on social media at @UnsolvedSCPod. That's the name to find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

~~~~~~~~~~ 

CREDITS:

Anne Emerson - Host, Writer, Producer

Drew Tripp - Executive Producer, Social Media, Graphic Design

Daniel Michener - Producer, Audio Engineer

Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

Amy Russo - Voiceover Guest

Christian Galvano - Voiceover Guest

Eli Brand - Voiceover Guest

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

(Originally published December 9, 2021)

This is the story of what happened leading up to a fatal 2019 boat crash that claimed the life of Mallory Beach, and introduced many across South Carolina to the Murdaugh family through then 19-year-old Paul Murdaugh. 

Paul was reportedly driving a group of friends around on his father's boat amid a night of underage drinking at parties and bars.

The friends' night of fun begins to devolve into chaos as more alcohol is consumed and an infamous alter-ego appears, eventually ending in horror as the boat crashes into a bridge.

Read more on the Murdaugh saga: https://abcnews4.com/murdaugh

~~~~~~~~~~ 

Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

Please consider leaving a review and a 5-star rating if you enjoy the podcast. It greatly helps spread the show to other listeners.

Follow the show on social media at @UnsolvedSCPod. That's the name to find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

~~~~~~~~~~ 

CREDITS:

Anne Emerson - Host, Writer, Producer

Drew Tripp - Executive Producer

Daniel Michener - Engineer, Producer

Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

Amy Russo - Voiceover Guest

Caroline Balchunas - Voiceover Guest

Christian Galvano - Voiceover Guest

Eli Brand - Voiceover Guest

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

(Originally published November 24, 2021)

This is the story of Gloria Satterfield. She died after a fall at the Murdaugh's family home on Groundhog Day, 2018. Since then, her family has lived an unending winter of abuse and manipulation that lawsuits and criminal indictments say were part of cold, calculated scheme by Alex Murdaugh.

Authorities accuse Alex Murdaugh of stealing over $3 million in settlement money intended for Gloria's family, first beguiling his former housekeeper's sons into a sketchy agreement to sue him, then using his connections in the Hampton community and legal profession to keep them in the dark while he siphoned away money that wasn't his.

Meanwhile, state prosecutors now say Gloria's case has revealed similar criminal affronts to many other victims, kept hidden in the immense shadow of influence cast by Alex Murdaugh's prominent, powerful family. In all, police claim Murdaugh stole nearly $5 million over the course of 7 years.

More on the Murdaugh saga: https://abcnews4.com/murdaugh

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Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

Anne Emerson - Host, Producer

Drew Tripp - Executive Producer, Social Media, Graphic Design

Daniel Michener - Producer, Audio Engineer

Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

Please consider leaving a review and a 5-star rating if you enjoy the podcast. It greatly helps spread the show to other listeners.

Follow the show on social media at @UnsolvedSCPod. That's the name to find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In part two of our look into the unsolved death of Stephen Smith, we drill into the persistent rumors of the Murdaughs being somehow involved.

Questions we attempt to answer this week include: 

• How did the Murdaugh name get brought into Stephen Smith's death investigation?
• How far did law enforcement go down that rumor trail after Stephen's death? 
• What brought investigators back to that angle of the case six years after Stephen died?

Investigators with the South Carolina Highway Patrol interviewed at least 18 people as part of their probe in the year that followed Stephen's death. You'll hear more of those interviews, and what the troopers thought about the case in this week's episode.

One thing becomes abundantly clear very quickly: State Troopers do NOT believe Stephen's death was an accidental hit-and-run. It's a murder investigation from the get-go in there eyes.

Meanwhile, Stephen's mother, Sandy, his sister, Stephanie, and their entire family have been left in a lurch just wanting answers and justice as year after agonizing year has passed with no resolution.

Is there hope of finality on the horizon? 

More on the Murdaugh saga: https://abcnews4.com/murdaugh

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Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

• Anne Emerson - Host, Producer
• Drew Tripp - Executive Producer, Social Media, Graphic Design
• Daniel Michener - Producer, Audio Engineer
• Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music
• Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

Please consider leaving a review and a rating if you enjoy the podcast. It greatly helps spread the show to other listeners.

Follow the show on social media at @UnsolvedSCPod. That's the name to find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Stephen Smith was found dead along a rural Hampton County road in the pre-dawn hours of July 8, 2015. His death came under mysterious circumstances, and remains unsolved. 

Stephen Smith's death ultimately was ruled a hit-and-run by a medical examiner, despite law enforcement saying there was no solid evidence to prove that's what actually happened. 

Instead, law enforcement treated Stephen's death as a homicide from the start, saying what physical evidence they found indicated a possibly staged accident scene.

Fiery rumors of who was to blame began to burn as the investigation progressed, but the case ultimately went cold. That's until June 2021, weeks after the deaths of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh.

State police announced they were reopening Stephen's case based on new information found related to the Murdaugh murders, tying yet another death to the beleaguered family.

So how exactly do the Murdaughs fit into Stephen's story? Over the next two episodes we'll examine the possible connections revealed through hours of interviews with Stephen's family and friends, as well as other possible suspects.

More on the Murdaugh saga: https://abcnews4.com/murdaugh

~~~~~~~~~~ 

Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

• Anne Emerson - Host, Producer
• Drew Tripp - Executive Producer, Social Media, Graphic Design
• Daniel Michener - Producer, Audio Engineer
• Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music
• Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design
• Alex Caban - Voiceover Contributor

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Meet Curtis "Eddie" Smith, the man police say shot Alex Murdaugh in the head along a rural stretch of Hampton County highway — but not out of malice. Eddie maintains he and Alex were longtime friends, like brothers. 

Authorities say Eddie also  was (allegedly) a personal drug dealer to Alex. State investigators say Alex asked Eddie to kill him as part of an assisted suicide plot and insurance fraud scheme meant to benefit Alex's surviving son, Buster, in the form of a $10 million life insurance settlement. 

Eddie denies he was involved in the scheme, saying it was instead a set-up and he never shot Alex. And the public speculated the shooting never happened either, after Murdaugh showed up to a bond court appearance just over a week after the alleged shooting with no visible injury. 

Medical records provided by Murdaugh's attorney, Dick Harpootlian, show Alex was indeed shot, suffering a skull fracture and a brain bleed. 

Yet as serious as those injuries sound, Alex spent only a handful of days in the hospital, soon transferring to a drug rehab facility after it was revealed he was battling a years-long addiction to prescription pain pills. 

Also coming out in the wash was Alex had been forced to resign from his family's law firm a day before he was shot following the firm's discovery he'd been stealing money from the business. 

Read more on the Murdaughs at this link: https://abcnews4.com/news/murdaugh-murders

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Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.  

Anne Emerson - Host, Producer  

Drew Tripp - Executive Producer, Social Media, Graphic Design   

Daniel Michener - Producer, Audio Engineer  

Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music  

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design   

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 2: A look into the history of the Murdaugh family and their rise to prominence in the legal profession as adept personal injury attorneys and also the top prosecutors in South Carolina's 14th Judicial Circuit, which includes Hampton County and four other surrounding counties.   

Randolph Murdaugh Sr., the Murdaugh family patriarch, founded what would become today's Peters Murdaugh Parker Eltzroth & Detrick law firm as a one-man office in Hampton County in 1910.  

Randolph Murdaugh Sr. became the first elected solicitor (district attorney) for the 14th Circuit in 1920. In 1940, Randolph Sr. died after being hit by a train near the Early Branch community in Hampton County.  

The same year, Randolph "Buster" Murdaugh, Jr. became his father's successor, the second generation of Murdaugh men elected to serve as 14th Circuit Solicitor.

Buster Murdaugh would face criminal charges in 1956 as part of a federal bootleg liquor conspiracy trial, but was ultimately acquitted despite a federal judge's harsh criticism of Buster and accusations of witness tampering.

Buster would serve until his retirement in 1986, after which Randolph Murdaugh III was elected to continue the Murdaugh family's legal reign over the 14th Circuit. Randolph III held the seat until retiring to private practice in 2006.

Randolph III's sons Randy and Alex followed their father into the legal profession, but didn't seek the solicitor's role.

Read more on the Murdaughs at this link: https://abcnews4.com/news/murdaugh-murders

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Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

Anne Emerson - Host, Producer

Drew Tripp - Executive Producer, Social Media, Graphic Design

Daniel Michener - Producer, Audio Engineer

Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

Episode 1: Connecting the dots of mysterious deaths and alleged crimes related to the Murdaugh family. 

Read more on the Murdaughs at this link: https://abcnews4.com/news/murdaugh-murders

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unsolved South Carolina is a production of ABC News 4 in Charleston, South Carolina.

Anne Emerson - Host, Producer

Drew Tripp - Executive Producer, Social Media, Graphic Design

Daniel Michener - Producer, Audio Engineer

Maxwell Harrison, KJ Morrison - Music

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In June 2021, Alex Murdaugh (pron. mer-dock) called 9-1-1 to report he'd found his wife, Maggie, and youngest son, Paul, dead outside their home in rural Colleton County, South Carolina. Both Maggie and Paul had been brutally shot to death.

As months have passed, what began as a criminal investigation into Maggie and Paul Murdaugh's murders has broadened into several additional criminal probes of Alex Murdaugh and his dealings as a member of a powerful South Carolina family with generations of influence over the criminal justice system across a large area of the state.

Those investigations into Alex Murdaugh include claims of missing money from his family's law firm, a chronic drug addiction, a failed assisted suicide attempt and insurance fraud plot, a stolen life insurance settlement, and his family's ties to three other local deaths: Mallory Beach in 2019, Gloria Satterfield in 2018, and Stephen Smith in 2015.

In this podcast, veteran journalist Anne Emerson will delve into the unfolding developments and crucial background information of the case, featuring interviews with people directly involved and others with close ties to the suspects and many victims in this ever-murkier murder mystery 

Unsolved South Carolina: The Murdaughs premiered October 14, 2021, on all major podcast platforms.

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(The Murdaughs: Murders, Money & Mystery is a Criminally Obsessed audio original, produced in partnership with WCIV-TV ABC News 4 in Charleston.)

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Credits

Anne Emerson - Show Host, Executive Producer, Co-creator

Daniel Michener - Audio Engineer, Producer, Co-creator

Drew Tripp - Managing Producer, Graphic Design, Social Media 

Douglas Stewart - Graphic Design

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Follow on social media: @unsolvedscpod (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter)

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.