Moselle, Alex Murdaugh's 1,772-acre estate in murder trial, has a dark history

Table Of Content

• Three bodies, 1,700 acres and hogs: Alex Murdaugh’s $4m Moselle estate
• What to know about Moselle, the scene of the killings in Alex Murdaugh’s trial
• Frank Sinatra's former NYC townhouse lists for the first time in more than 50 years
• What to Know About the South Carolina Property Where the Murdaugh Murders Took Place
• 9Three bodies, 1,700 acres and hogs: Alex Murdaugh’s $4m Moselle estate

The judge also advised them that some things have changed on the property in the aftermath of the murders. In particular, jurors heard a lot about the hunting of wild hogs – from the time of day to hunt to the type of guns used. However, Murdaugh's defense team petitioned for a new trial in September, alleging Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill of inappropriate communications with jurors, denying their client a fair trial. The lawyers contend Hill's communications may have helped remove jurors sympathetic Murdaugh and swayed others. Murdaugh was convicted of two counts of murder during a six-week trial in Walterboro, South Carolina. The trial concluded on March 3, 2023, with Judge Clifton Newman sentencing him to two life sentences.

Three bodies, 1,700 acres and hogs: Alex Murdaugh’s $4m Moselle estate

The family also had a home in Hampton, South Carolina, as well as a beach home in Edisto Beach. He and his father were arrested on drug smuggling charges in 1980 when investigators seized 15 tons of marijuana from a shrimp boat in the Bahamas. It was the home of Barrett Boulware – a fisherman, suspected drug smuggler and Alex Murdaugh’s longtime friend and business partner who died in 2018. Before the Murdaughs called Moselle home, the property was tied to another controversial family. Before returning their guilty verdict on 2 March, jurors went back to the place where it all began. The Moselle house, which stands out in its surrounding with a white outlook, is characterized by front and back porches.

What to know about Moselle, the scene of the killings in Alex Murdaugh’s trial

Moselle was publicly posted for sale by the Crosby Land Co. of Colleton County on Feb. 14, 2022 — roughly four months before Murdaugh was indicted by a grand jury on murder charges. Alex also faces a plethora of other charges—99 to be exact—related to money laundering, embezzlement, tax evasion, and beyond that were not part of the murder trial (though some related information was allowed to be entered into evidence). The estate comes with a 1,140-square foot guest cottage, as well as 2.5 miles of river frontage that provides freshwater fishing, kayaking and other sports, it noted. "Complete with commercial-grade appliances and a large game room, [the house] is perfectly suited for entertaining large groups," the real estate listing noted. "That money is going to help the victims of these people who went through a very dark time in their life and were wronged," the buyer, Phillip Jennings of Soperton, Georgia, told the publication.

Frank Sinatra's former NYC townhouse lists for the first time in more than 50 years

The jury’s tour of the murder scene came at the request of Murdaugh’s defence attorney Dick Harpootlian who said “it would be useful for the jury to see Moselle” before they decided the fate of the disgraced attorney. But the sale was put on hold when Murdaugh was accused of trying to offload his assets to avoid paying up in a string of lawsuits he is facing, prompting a court to freeze his assets. The property was first listed in February 2022 – eight months after Maggie and Paul’s murders and five months before Murdaugh was charged with them – under a new name of Cross Swamp Farm. One witness even told the court how he had killed around 1,000 hogs in his time in the area (though not just on the Murdaugh estate).

South Carolina hunting lodge owned by Alex Murdaugh sold to new owner at steep discount -- for $1M - New York Post

South Carolina hunting lodge owned by Alex Murdaugh sold to new owner at steep discount -- for $1M.

Posted: Fri, 16 Feb 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Aside from being horrific, they likely gained even more media attention due to Paul Murdaugh's own ongoing trial, in which he was charged with a wrongful death suit for a fatal boat crash that occurred while he was boating under the influence. As Murdaugh is facing multiple personal injury suits, and one wrongful death suit, attorneys are seeking to make their alleged victims whole, which means that Murdaugh's assets are up for grabs — including his family's beach getaway. The 1,700 acres family estate was purchased by James A. Ayer and Jeffrey L. Godley in March, according to the Greenville News, part of the USA TODAY Network. The proceeds of the sale were divided between several parties including the Murdaugh family's surviving son, Buster, Murdaugh's younger brother John Marvin Murdaugh, and victims of a 2019 boat crash involving Paul, among others. Before the jury in the trial of Alex Murdaugh goes to deliberations, they will be leaving the courtroom and taking a field trip more than 20 miles away to Moselle. They will visit the rural, 1,772-acre hunting estate in Islandton, S.C., that’s been under contract to be sold for almost $4 million, to see the location where Murdaugh is accused of killing his wife and son.

Alex Murdaugh's Colleton County property to be auctioned - Charleston Business - Charleston Regional Business

Alex Murdaugh's Colleton County property to be auctioned - Charleston Business.

Posted: Mon, 08 Jan 2024 15:25:58 GMT [source]

Alex Murdaugh (sometimes referred to as "Alec") is a former lawyer whose family built a legal dynasty in South Carolina. To give you a sense of just how far back their power goes, Alex's great-great-grandfather Randolph Murdaugh Sr. founded a law firm and was elected solicitor for the 14th Judicial Circuit (which includes a staggering five counties) in 1920. According to a pool report from The Wall Street Journal’s Valerie Bauerlein, the jury visit lasted around 1 hour 20 minutes in total including travel time. The media was also banned from accompanying jurors on the trip, though a small media pool visited the site once the jury left.

They were both shot multiple times with different weapons at the dog kennels on the property sometime after they all had dinner together at the main house. Known as Moselle Farm, the property is located at 4147 Moselle Road in Islandton, South Carolina. Along with the infamous hunting lodge, the sprawling estate features a farm, two miles of river frontage for freshwater fishing and kayaking, dog kennels, plenty of turkey and deer for on-site hunting, and a custom-built home constructed in 2011. Fast forwarding many years later to June 7, 2021, Alex called 911 to report the shooting of his wife, Maggie, and their son, Paul.

9Three bodies, 1,700 acres and hogs: Alex Murdaugh’s $4m Moselle estate

Michael Satterfield, a son of Gloria Satterfield, testified this month that Murdaugh never told the family that he collected more than $4 million in insurance settlements after the 57-year-old woman’s fatal fall at his home. The property was bought by a farmer whose family owns significant acreage in Colleton County, S.C., that’s adjacent to the Murdaughs’ near Islandton, along with a partner in nearby Bamberg County, reported WCIV in Charleston. Murdaugh allegedly used at least two banks in South Carolina to orchestrate his financial schemes, including Palmetto State Bank in Hampton, allegedly stealing more than $8 million from his former clients, partners and other attorneys. The property, located at 3606 Big Bay Drive, Edisto Island, is owned by Murdaugh and the estate of his late wife, Margaret "Maggie" Murdaugh, as tenants in common. Maggie and the couple's younger son, Paul, were shot and killed in June 2021 in an ongoing criminal case also connected to Murdaugh in which no one has been charged.

The former attorney was convicted of killing his wife Maggie Murdaugh and son Paul in March.

Custom built in 2011, it also boasts mahogany doors, heart pine floors, a grand staircase, a chef's kitchen with top-of-the-line appliances and granite countertops, a billiards room and custom gun cabinets. There are also two man-made waterfowl reservoirs planted with corn to attract the birds and a 20-acre dove field with a dead wire and parameter fencing to minimize crop damage, the listing adds.

Last week, the property, which was held in Maggie Murdaugh’s name at the time she was killed, was sold by The Crosby Land Company, according to a listing. The buyers are reportedly “two men,” according to Savannah, Georgia-based ABC affiliate WJCL. An estimated 3,000 people showed up for an auction of items from the Moselle estate on Thursday — three times the normal crowd, Emily McGarry, who works for the auction house, told CBS News. Throughout the trial, jurors heard how the property’s 1,700 acres were a hunter’s paradise with dove fields, deer stands and duck ponds all over the estate.

Alex Murdaugh was convicted in March of killing his wife Maggie Murdaugh and son Paul near the family dog kennels, about a quarter mile from the house on June 7, 2021. The listing comes less than five months after Alex Murdaugh, 53 — the father of the family — allegedly conspired to hire a hit man to kill him so that he could leave his only surviving son, Richard, known as Buster, a $10 million life insurance policy, The Post reported. On April 26, those attorneys filed a motion in Hampton County Court of Common Pleas asking the court to consider and approve the sale of one of Murdaugh's real estate properties, his family vacation home in Edisto. In addition to cellphone data, one of the strongest pieces of evidence against Alex (more on the trial ahead!) was a Snapchat video captured by Paul that put his father at the kennels—the scene of the crime—minutes prior to the murders. Alex had previously claimed to be napping at the main home on the property during that time frame, and the video reveals his duplicity. When on the stand, Alex admitted to lying about this, referencing an 1808 quote from Sir Walter Scott, "Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive."

Since the property was sold for $3.9 million, the agreed-upon calculations mean that Buster Murdaugh will receive $530,000 as the devisee of the estate. The final Murdaugh receiving a payout is John Marvin Murdaugh, Alex Murdaugh’s younger brother, for funds he previously advanced on the estate’s behalf. The family home was built in 2011 and consists of four bedrooms and 3.5 baths, meaning it could “easily be converted into a weekend hunting lodge with the capability to sleep up to 15 people”, the listing reads. On 1 March, the jury was taken to the family’s sprawling 1,700-acre Moselle estate in Islandton, South Carolina, to see for themselves the crime scene where Maggie and Paul were killed back on 7 June 2021.

A hearing had been scheduled for June 10, 2021, but the charges were dropped after Paul Murdaugh’s death, WCBD in Charleston reported. On Feb. 2, 2018, Gloria Satterfield, the family’s longtime housekeeper, died at the home in an apparent slip-and-fall accident. But Satterfield’s death was not reported to the local coroner’s office and no autopsy was performed on the body after her death certificate indicated that she died of natural causes, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED). Murdaugh is currently facing nine civil suits directly naming him, but there are other ongoing civil actions surrounding his alleged decade-long financial crime spree and a fatal 2019 boat crash involving his family, with new legal developments emerging almost weekly. Also last week, buyers from across the country descended upon an auction house in Georgia where personal property from Moselle was sold.

The case was settled in January; surviving passengers from the incident are also included in the settlement. In regards to the double murder, no arrests were made until more than a year later in July 2022 when Alex Murdaugh was indicted for the murders of his wife and son. Alex's wife and son were found deceased at the family's hunting lodge in Islandton, South Carolina, which is on the same vast property as their main house, 4147 Moselle.

The jury’s scheduled trip to Moselle comes as Murdaugh’s defense rested its case after calling 14 witnesses during roughly two weeks of testimony. An expert in crime-scene reconstruction and blood-spatter analysis who was called by Murdaugh’s defense team testified that evidence from Moselle suggests that the killings of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were carried out by two shooters. Moselle, the 1,770-acre site of the Murdaugh family murders was sold last week for $3.9 million, according to reports and records.

The co-receivers are tasked to determine what Murdaugh's assets are, where they may be allegedly hidden, and control those assets through the creation of a fund for alleged victims and their pending suits. According to the Greenville News, a settlement agreement was filed by attorneys for Maggie Murdaugh on Jan. 10 outlining how the money from the sale of the hunting lodge will be dispersed. The proceeds of the infamous hunting lodge will largely benefit the survivors and victims of a 2019 drunken boat crash caused by the youngest member of the fallen-from-grace legal dynasty.