Alex Murdaugh can be seen sobbing standing amid the blurry bodies of his wife and son in recently released body cam footage showing at his double murder trial.
Corporal Buford “Chad” McDowell of the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office was the second to arrive at the sprawling hunting estate in Islandton, South Carolina on June 7, 2021.
He was responding to a hysterical 911 call made minutes earlier by Murdaugh, who reported finding his wife and son “severely injured.”
Once on the property, McDowell walked past the kennels and the body of 22-year-old Paul Murdaugh, who had been fatally shot twice with a shotgun.
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Alex Murdaugh speaking to officers after his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, and son, Paul Murdaugh, were shot and killed on June 7, 2021. (South Carolina Attorney General’s Office)
His mother, Maggie Murdaugh, 52, can be seen to McDowell’s right about 30 feet away as the incessant sound of barking dogs can be heard in the background.
“Her name is Maggie Murdaugh,” Alex Murdaugh can be heard, choking back tears, telling Sgt. Daniel Greene, as McDowell approached.
Alex Murdaugh smiles at his family in the audience as he returns for the afternoon session of his murder trial at the Colleton County Courthouse on Tuesday, February 7, 2023. (Joshua Boucher/The State/Pool)
“How are you doing?” the once-revered lawyer, who was working as a volunteer prosecutor at the time, asked McDowell.
The 40-minute video was shown to the jury when McDowell testified on January 26, but it was only made public on Monday.
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Murdaugh is accused of fatally shooting his wife and son to create a distraction, so his alleged theft of nearly $9 million from his law firm and clients would not be exposed, according to prosecutors.
Crime scene photo of Alex Murdaugh showing a mannequin near where Paul Murdaugh was shot. Drops of blood and a yellow evidence marker can be seen on the floor of the feeding room. (South Carolina Attorney General’s Office)
In the footage, officers can be seen placing a pink sheet over both bodies. McDowell told them that the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) was on its way and not to disturb the scene.
McDowell can also be seen identifying casings on the ground. At one point, McDowell asked the other agents, “Is everyone familiar with this family?”
“I wasn’t until you told me the names,” Greene replied.
Diagram of the section of Alex Murdaugh’s property where his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul, were murdered. (Fox News)
“I’ll inform you later,” the deputy replied. He later theorized that the crime had to be “retaliation” against the powerful family.
Later in the video, McDowell and other officers can be seen lifting the sheet from Paul’s face-down body to search for a weapon. The door to the feeding room can be seen splattered with blood.
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“I don’t think he put the phone back on his back,” McDowell said of Paul’s iPhone, which was resting in his back pocket. Murdaugh told investigators that he had put the device there after picking it up.
From left to right, Buster, Maggie, Paul and Alex Murdaugh in an undated photo. (Facebook)
Towards the end of the video, McDowell can be heard theorizing with other deputies about what happened.
“His brain matter is on the ceiling, so he was shot at an upward angle with a shotgun butt lying on the floor that would aim for suicide,” McDowell suggested. “That doesn’t explain (Maggie).”
Bodycam footage shows the location of the bodies of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh, which have been erased.
Monday marked the fourth week of Murdaugh’s trial. The day was dominated by testimony from forensic scientist Sara Zapata, from SLED’s DNA department.
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She told jurors that Murdaugh’s shirt had the DNA of his murdered wife and son on it, but no blood.
Haley Chi-Sing and Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
