Topics: US News, Crime, True crime
Alex Murdaugh's trial is well underway and so far, it's been nothing short of shocking.
This week, Alex Murdaugh, the once powerful lawyer from a prominent American legal dynasty broke down in tears when video footage was shown to the court that would allegedly place him at the scene of the murders just minutes before:
So, a little bit of background for anyone who might not spot why this video could be a problem for Murdaugh.
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First and foremost, Murdaugh is currently on trial for the murder of his wife Maggie and his son Paul, who were shot and killed on the family's property on 7 June 2021.
On the night that Maggie and Paul were shot dead, Murdaugh told police that he had seen the two alive just 90 minutes earlier, and that he returned home to find them dead.
Murdaugh's alibi is that he had seen Maggie and Paul at the family dog kennels before he went to take a nap and when he woke up, he decided to visit his mother.
He claims he tried to call Maggie to let her know, but she didn't pick up, so he left. And when he returned home, he discovered that both his wife and son had been shot dead.
Murdaugh told police this exact alibi multiple times in the days following the double homicide.
But, on Wednesday (1 February), prosecutors shared a near-damning piece of evidence with the court.
The evidence is the video above - a simple video filmed by Paul down at the dog kennels just five minutes before he was shot.
Paul had filmed the video on Snapchat to send to his friend Rogan Gibson at approximately 8.45pm.
At first, the video doesn't look like much.
It's just Rogan's brown labrador Cash, who had been staying in the Murdaugh family's kennels.
But it's not so much about what you see, as it is about what you hear.
Prosecutors pointed out that three voices can be heard in the background of the video: Paul and Maggie, and allegedly, Murdaugh.
While the video played, Murdaugh could be seen sitting with his head down and appearing to cry, later wiping his eyes with a tissue.
Testifying in court, cell phone forensics expert Lt Britt Dove of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) explained: "You hear three different voices in the video.
"Because they're so different, you can tell that they're different voices."
To further support this allegation, Rogan Gibson also testified that Paul had called him just before sending the video, and he's certain he heard Alex Murdaugh in the background.
"I heard Ms. Maggie... and I thought it was Mr. Alex that I heard," he recalled.
Murdaugh maintains that he is innocent of the killings of his wife and son, and has insisted that he loved them 'more than anything in the world'.
Prosecutors claim that the killings of Murdaugh's wife and son brought him sympathy, and are claiming that their deaths afforded the lawyer more time to cover up money he is charged with stealing from the settlement fees of his clients.
The prosecution is not seeking the death penalty for the lawyer if he is found guilty of murder, but they are aiming for life imprisonment without parole, meaning the 54-year-old would likely be behind bars for the rest of his life.
