Alex Murdaugh To Face Charges In Murder Of Wife, Son: Report

COLUMBIA, SC — Prominent South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh is expected to be indicted on murder charges in connection with the shooting deaths of his wife and son, one of Murdaugh's attorneys told Fox Carolina on Tuesday.

Representatives from the State Law Enforcement Division visited with Murdaugh's family to notify them of the charges, Jim Griffin told the TV station.

Griffin couldn't comment further because the charges are not official.

The State Law Enforcement Division and Attorney General's Office did not immediately return inquiries from Patch regarding the potential charges.

The potential indictments would be the latest controversial developments for Murdaugh, a 64-year-old from a powerful political family in the Lowcountry of South Carolina.

Murdaugh's 52-year-old wife, Margaret, and 22-year-old son, Paul, were shot and killed outside their home in Islandton last June. Murdaugh called 911 to report the shooting, according to authorities.

The investigation into their deaths revealed several twists and resulted in indictments against Murdaugh on 71 charges accusing him of defrauding clients out of $8.5 million. Murdaugh resigned from the law firm Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth & Detrick, and his South Carolina law license was suspended.

An investigation into the 2015 death of 19-year-old Stephen Smith was reopened because of information discovered in the investigation, according to authorities.

Murdaugh reported being shot at and was treated for a superficial gunshot wound in September, and authorities later arrested Curtis Edward Smith, and charged him with assisted suicide and conspiracy to commit insurance fraud. According to an affidavit, Smith was to kill Murdaugh so his surviving son could collect life insurance payout worth $10 million.

Murdaugh has been incarcerated in Columbia on $7 million bond since December.