Convicted killer Alex Murdaugh did something Thursday that he hasn’t done in the two years since his life of privilege and power began to unravel — plead guilty to a crime.
Murdaugh pleaded guilty in federal court to 22 counts of financial fraud and money laundering.
Murdaugh, 55, is serving a life sentence without parole in a South Carolina prison for shooting his wife and child.
He has denied any role in the murders since their deaths in June 2021 and maintained his innocence in two days of testimony earlier this year before he was convicted of two counts of murder.
A federal guilty plea would likely mean years if not decades in prison for the fired attorney, even if his murder conviction and sentence in state court were overturned on appeal.
Murdaugh told the judge he wanted to take responsibility for stealing from his client and do right by his surviving son.
“I want to be responsible. I want my son to see me responsible. It is my hope that by taking responsibility that the people I hurt can begin to heal,” Murdaugh said, standing in an orange South Carolina prison jumpsuit.
Alex Murdaugh pleaded guilty to financial crimes. News 19 WLTX
He will be sentenced at a later date.
Plea agreements in federal court are simple.
Prosecutors will ask that any federal sentence Murdaugh serve run concurrently with any prison sentence he is serving from state court.
Each charge against the 55-year-old carries a maximum prison sentence of at least 20 years. News 19 WLTX
They will not give him the credit that a defendant usually receives for pleading guilty.
In exchange, the authorities get a requirement placed in almost every plea agreement, which is especially important in this case: “The defendant agrees to be completely honest and forthright with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies by providing full information , complete and true as to all criminal activity of which he has knowledge,” reads the standard language included in Murdaugh’s agreement.
That can be a variety of faults.
Federal charges against the disgraced lawyer, whose family are both prosecutors and founders of a shady law firm that no longer bears the Murdaugh name in tiny Hampton County, deal in stealing money from some clients and others, and creating accounts fraudulent bank.
Murdaugh still faces about 100 different charges in state court.
Authorities say he committed insurance fraud by trying to have someone kill him so his surviving son could get $10 million in life insurance, but the shooting only took Murdaugh’s head.
Investigators say Murdaugh also failed to pay taxes on the money he stole, took settlements from several clients and his family’s law firm, and ran a money laundering and drug ring.
He is scheduled to stand trial on at least some of those charges in late November.
Judge Clifton Newman presides over an update on several cases involving financial crimes allegedly committed by convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh in Beaufort, SCAP
“I want to be responsible. I want my son to see me responsible. It is my hope that by taking responsibility that the people I hurt can begin to heal,” Murdaugh said, standing in an orange South Carolina prison jumpsuit. News 19 WLTX
State prosecutors insist they want him to face justice for everyone.
In federal court in Charleston, Murdaugh’s attorney said he would plead guilty to 14 counts of money laundering, five counts of wire fraud, one count of bank fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit. wire fraud.
Each charge carries a maximum prison sentence of at least 20 years.
Murdaugh is serving a life sentence without parole in a South Carolina prison for shooting his wife and son. News 19 WLTX
Some were sentenced to a maximum of 30 years in prison.
Murdaugh will be sentenced at a later date.
Other requirements of the plea agreement include Murdaugh paying back the $9 million he is accused of stealing and taking a lie detector test if requested.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
