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Investigator Testifies That Alex Murdaugh Uttered 'I Did Him So Bad' After Seeing Crime Scene Photos Of His Slain Son
Alex Murdaugh's attorneys disputed the investigators claims in court Tuesday, arguing that the former attorney had really said, "They did him so bad," when seeing the crime scene photos.
Prosecutors contend that when Alex Murdaugh was shown graphic photos of his son’s body, he may have uttered a confession, allegedly telling the investigator, “I did him so bad.”
But Murdaugh’s attorneys pushed back on the claim in court Tuesday, insisting that what the disgraced former attorney actually said days after the murders was, “They did him so bad,” according to The New York Post.
Murdaugh is on trial for murdering his wife Maggie, 52, and son Paul, 22, on the night of June 7, 2021. The mother and son were found shot multiple times — with different weapons — near some dog kennels on the family’s sprawling Colleton County hunting compound.
The statement in question came three days after the murders, when Murdaugh sat down with South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) investigators to discuss the grisly crime.
SLED Senior Special Agent Jeff Croft testified on Monday that he was “100 percent confident” that Murdaugh had used the word “I” as he sobbed while looking at the images.
Murdaugh told investigators that he had come home from visiting his ailing mother when he stumbled upon the bodies around 10 p.m.
"It was so bad, I did him so bad," Croft testified that Murdaugh cried, according to People. "He's such a good boy, too."
Murdaugh shook his head during the agent’s testimony, appearing to disagree.
Murdaugh’s defense attorneys also challenged the agent’s conclusion during their cross-examination on Tuesday, replaying the audio from the interview at a third of its original speed and concluding that Murdaugh had said, “They did him so bad.”
“What were the things going through your mind when you heard, or misheard, ‘I did him so bad?’” defense attorney Jim Griffin asked Croft, according to The New York Post. “I wasn’t a good dad? I spoiled him? Or, I killed him?”
Croft replied that he felt it was “definitely something we needed to follow up on,” yet his defense attorneys pointed out that investigators did not ask Murdaugh to clarify what he meant. They never asked him about the statement during that interview or again when they interviewed him three months later.
Croft testified that he initially didn’t mention the statement to Murdaugh because he wanted to keep his cooperation. Three months later, when investigators spoke with Murdaugh again, he said they didn’t specifically mention the comment but they did ask him whether he had killed his wife and son.
“[The jury gets] to hear the tape and make their own mind up on what he said,” Croft said of the dispute.
Prosecutors alleged last week that after killing his wife and son around 8:49 p.m. Murdaugh attempted to “manufacture an alibi,” by going to visit his mother, who is in the final stages of Alzheimer’s, and calling others close to him including reaching out via call and text to his wife, Maggie, The Daily Beast reports. Prosecutors previously said that a Snapchat video sent by Paul Murdaugh placed Alex near the dog kennels that same night, even though the father told investigators he never visited the kennels.
On Tuesday SLED Lt. Britt Dove, who specializes in computer crimes, testified that Murdaugh first texted his wife around 9:08 p.m. writing, “Going to check on M. Be right back.”
He called her repeatedly before sending a final text message at 9:47 p.m., writing simply, “Call me, babe.”
Dove testified that phone data showed Murdaugh had tried to call his wife at 9:04 p.m., twice at 9:06 p.m., 9:45 p.m. and 10:03 p.m., according to The Post and Courier.
According to Dove, phone data from Maggie’s phone showed the last text message she ever read was at 8:49 p.m. The message, which was sent by her brother-in-law John Marvin Murdaugh, was asking whether anyone planned to go visit his ailing father in the hospital the following day, The Daily Beast reports.
Along with her husband, others had tried to call her phone, including John Marvin and her oldest son Buster, but Maggie never answered. She also didn’t respond to any text messages, including one sent from Paul’s friend who had been trying to get in touch with the 22-year-old about a dog staying at the kennel but to no avail.
Although the phone locked at 8:49 p.m. and was never opened again, Dove testified that the phone orientation changed from portrait to landscape a few minutes later. He said that data indicated someone other than Maggie may have picked up the phone but was unable to unlock it through the phone’s face recognition tool. It changed orientation back to portrait a few seconds later.
The phone was later recovered by investigators the next day around 1 p.m. on the side of a road, according to the local paper.
Murdaugh has pleaded not guilty to the murder charges against him and could face up to life in prison if convicted.
His attorneys have argued that Murdaugh had been a loving husband and father and stumbled upon the bodies after returning home that night.
The trial is expected to continue on Wednesday.
