Lawyer accused of killing his wife and son goes on trial in the United States

Alex Murdaugh, an influential American lawyer, was accused of murdering his wife and son in 2021, for which he will be tried in court starting this Monday, with additional charges for attempts to defraud insurance companies, fraud and drug traffic.

The 54-year-old man was transferred in the morning to the courthouse in Walterboro, South Carolina, where the trial will take place. Murdaugh denies his involvement in the murder of his wife Maggie and his 22-year-old son Paul.

According to his version, the lawyer called emergencies on June 7, 2021, when he found the bodies of his family riddled with bullets in front of his house. A member of a very wealthy and influential family, Murdaugh said he had nothing to do with the crime and was not charged.

But three months later, investigators were drawn to a macabre insurance scam scheme. The defendant asked a former client to shoot him in the head so that with his death, his remaining son could receive $10 million in life insurance.

However, Murdaugh survived and an investigation was opened that led to several fraud charges.

He is suspected of embezzling more than $8.5 million in money from clients of his law firm. He is also charged with laundering money from opiate trafficking.

Investigators also found bloodstains on his clothing and phone calls that did not correspond to his alibi, for which he was also prosecuted for the murder of his wife and son. (YO)