Convicted murderer, accused fraudster Alex Murdaugh struck with more charges in South Carolina
Convicted murderer and disgraced former attorney Richard "Alex" Murdaugh was struck with more criminal charges this week in a second round of tax evasion indictments from the state of South Carolina.
S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson's office announced Tuesday that a grand jury convened last week issued a new indictment for Murdaugh for an additional two counts of "willful attempt to evade or defeat a tax," accusing him a second time of not paying state taxes on money he allegedly stole from his personal-injury law clients.
The indictment alleges tax evasion for 2020 and 2021, when Murdaugh failed to report $2,113,067 of income earned through illegal acts.
Murdaugh was previously indicted for tax evasion for 2011 through 2019. In that indictment, the State Grand Jury alleged Murdaugh failed to report $6,954,639 of income earned through illegal acts .
In total, the two indictments allege $9,067,706 of unreported income and the amount of state tax evaded at $619,391.
A spokesperson with the S.C. Attorney General's Office had previously said that it is possible federal tax evasion charges may eventually be levied against Murdaugh.
Willful tax evasion is punishable by up to five years in prison and/or a fine of up to $10,000 plus the cost of prosecution.
Murdaugh still facing 104 criminal charges
Altogether, through 20 indictments containing 101 state-level charges against Murdaugh, the State Grand Jury has indicted Murdaugh for schemes to defraud victims of roughly $8.8 million and the state of $620,000.
Murdaugh also has three local charges pending in connection with a September 2021 roadside shooting, insurance-fraud scheme, raising the total number of untried criminal charges against him to 104.
On March 2, Murdaugh was convicted on four felony charges in the June 2021 murders of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul, and sentenced to consecutive life sentences without parole. He is currently detained in protective custody at an undisclosed, maximum security state prison in South Carolina.
This State Grand Jury investigation is being conducted by the S.C. Law Enforcement Division, Attorney General’s Office, Department of Revenue, the FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The case will be prosecuted by the S.C. Attorney General’s Office.
Hampton County Guardian Editor Michael DeWitt, the Greenville News and Paste BN Network will continue to follow the ongoing criminal and civil cases surrounding the Murdaugh crime saga. Follow DeWitt on Twitter at @mmdewittjr.