Alex Murdaugh files alibi for night of wife, son’s murders

COLLETON COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – Former Hampton County attorney and accused murderer Alex Murdaugh on Thursday filed a formal alibi defense for the night that his wife and son were fatally shot.

Margaret Murdaugh (52) and Paul Murdaugh (22) were found brutally murdered at the family’s Colleton County property the night of June 7, 2021.

In his alibi defense, Murdaugh provides a somewhat more detailed timeline of what he claims occurred that evening.

Murdaugh said that he was with his wife and son at the family property until shortly after 9:00 p.m., when he went to visit his mother. He said that both Margaret and Paul were alive when he left. Murdaugh claimed that he made several phone calls to family members and friends on the way.

He allegedly arrived at his mother’s house around 9:20 p.m. and spent around 25 minutes with her and her nurses aid before leaving to go home around 9:45 p.m.

Murdaugh said that he arrived back to his home at around 10:00 p.m., found the bodies around 10:05 p.m., and called 911 two minutes later.

His alibi leaves a window of around 40 minutes during which Margaret and Paul could have been murdered, however Murdaugh noted that he “was not present at the time, place, and date of the murders” and “because he was not present, [he] does not know the time the murders were committed.”

Autopsy reports listed the time of death for both Paul and Maggie as sometime between 9:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

Murdaugh had previously filed a motion to strike the state’s request for alibi defense, claiming that it was improperly filed because the state did not specify “the time, date, and place at which the alleged offense occurred.”

Murdaugh extrapolated that the failure to include such details in the document meant that the state did not know what time the murders occurred.

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson responded to Murdaugh’s accusations, calling them without merit.

“The fact that Maggie and Paul were killed at Moeselle on June 7, 2021 might be one of the most well-known facts in the State,” Wilson said.

Wilson also noted that there is evidence “showing [Murduagh’s] presence along with the victims at the crime scene at 8:44 p.m.,” which contradicts Murdaugh’s timeline of the evening.

Editor’s note: This story is breaking and will be updated.