South Carolina Investigators To Exhume The Body Of Alex Murdaugh's Longtime Housekeeper

Investigators plan to exhume the body of Alex Murdaugh’s longtime family housekeeper four years after she died under mysterious circumstances. 

Renée Wunderlich, the director of public information for the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, told Oxygen.com authorities made the decision to exhume the body after receiving permission from Gloria Satterfield’s family.

“This is a complex process that will take weeks, not days,” she said.

Satterfield served for more than 20 years as the housekeeper for the family of South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh, who is now facing more than 70 criminal charges connected to a string of alleged financial crimes.  

Wunderlich declined to provide any additional information about why authorities wanted to exhume the body, citing the “active and ongoing” investigation.

Alex Murdaugh Photo: AP

Satterfield died in February of 2018 after the Murdaugh family reported she slipped and fell on the family’s Colleton County hunting compound in February of 2018. She died at a local hospital later that month as a result of the injuries.

SLED launched a criminal investigation into Satterfield’s death in September after Hampton County Coroner Angela Topper questioned a number of “inconsistencies” in the account of how she died, according to a letter Topper wrote to authorities that was previously obtained by Oxygen.com.

Alex’s wife Maggie Murdaugh and youngest son, Paul Murdaugh—who were both murdered at the family’s home in June 2021 in a still unsolved double homicide—called 911 on February 2, 2018 to report that Satterfield had been injured on the family’s property.

“My housekeeper has fallen and her head is bleeding,” Maggie said in the recording previously obtained by Oxygen.com. “I cannot get her up.”

During the call, Maggie told the dispatcher that Satterfield had fallen “going up” some brick stairs outside the family’s home. She reported that Satterfield was “not really” conscious and was mumbling.

“Are you guys able to control the bleeding?” the dispatcher asked.

“No, I haven’t even tried,” Maggie responded at the time.

Satterfield was transported to the hospital, where she later had a stroke, went into cardiac arrest and died on Feb. 26, 2018, according to an arrest warrant in the case previously obtained by People.com.

After her death, investigators have said Alex Murdaugh encouraged her sons to file a wrongful death lawsuit against him, referring them to his close friend, attorney Cory Fleming.

Fleming was able to secure a $4.3 million settlement with the insurance company on behalf of the family, but authorities have said the family never received any of the money, according to the arrest warrant.

Instead, they’ve alleged that Murdaugh deposited the money into his own bank account.

Murdaugh and Fleming are now each facing criminal charges in connection with the alleged scheme to defraud the family.

Both men are also facing a series of other charges for similar alleged schemes to defraud Murdaugh’s former clients of settlement money.

Just last month, authorities announced four new charges against Murdaugh bringing the staggering number of criminal charges lodged against the legal scion to 79.

The investigation into Alex Murdaugh’s activities began last year after the double homicide of Maggie and Paul.