A timeline of events surrounding the Alex Murdaugh charges

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The mysterious shooting deaths of the wife and son of a prominent South Carolina attorney have prompted investigations that reveal charges of money laundering, a narcotics ring, a attempt on his life and millions of dollars in stolen money.

On Thursday, Alex Murdaugh was accused of murderlatest in a sharp drop which has covered the last 13 months. Here’s a look at the events surrounding his accusations:

June 7, 2021: Murdaugh call the police to report that his wife Maggie, 52, and son Paul, 22, were shot to death near a kennel on their property.

June 23, 2021: An investigation into the hit and run death of 19-year-old Stephen Smith, unsolved for six years, is reopened based on information gathered by officers investigating shooting deaths. It is unclear what evidence in the Murdaugh case prompted the move.

Sept. 4, 2021: Alex Murdaugh attempts to arrange his own death in a scheme to secure his surviving son a $10 million life insurance payout, authorities say. the plot fails when the shot, which police say was fired by Murdaugh associate Curtis Edward Smith, only grazes Murdaugh’s head. Smith was eventually charged with assisted suicide, insurance fraud, and various other charges.

Oct. 14, 2021: Police arrest Murdaugh at a drug rehab center in Orlando, Florida, on charges that he stole insurance settlements for a total of more than $4 million intended for the children of his late housekeeper.

October 19, 2021: A judge denies Murdaugh’s bailsaying his considerable financial resources and mental instability make it too risky to allow him to await trial outside of jail.

November 2, 2021: A judge freezes Murdaugh’s assetsciting concerns that he and his surviving son might be planning to hide money.

November 17, 2021: Prosecutors reveal 27 new charges against Murdaugh, saying he stole nearly $5 million in settlement money. Prosecutors allege Murdaugh was hiding money from attorneys who sued him in the death of a slain teenager when authorities say an intoxicated Paul Murdaugh capsized the boat he was driving.

Jan. 18, 2022: Additional indictments mean Murdaugh is now faces 71 charges who stole nearly $8.5 million in wrongful death and accident settlements from more than a dozen people.

March 16, 2022: An indictment accuses for a long time Murdaugh friend Cory Fleming of working with the disgraced attorney to defraud the children of Gloria Satterfield, the family’s housekeeper who died after a fall at the Murdaugh home in 2018. Fleming had sued Murdaugh on behalf of the Satterfield family. but kept the resulting $3 million insurance payments for Murdaugh and himself.

May 4, 2022 – Russell Laffitte, former CEO of Palmetto State Bank before his firing earlier this year, is indicted on charges that conspired with Murdaugh to defraud victims of $1.8 million. One of the victims was the family of a deaf man left quadriplegic after a car accident.

June 28, 2022: Prosecutors outline an eight-year sentence money laundering network and painkillers on new accusations. Both Murdaugh and Smith, the friend accused of the once prominent lawyer’s suicide attempt, were charged with possession, manufacture or distribution of narcotics.

Jul 12, 2022 – Attorney Jim Griffin says investigators told family members that plans to press murder charges against Murdaugh for the deaths of his wife and son. The Supreme Court of South Carolina disables Murdaugh.

July 14, 2022: Murdaugh is charged with murder in the deaths of his wife and son. The grand jury indictments allege that Murdaugh killed his wife with a rifle and his son with a shotgun.

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James Pollard is a staff member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercover issues.

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