Disbarred South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh sped up as he passed the spot where his slain wife’s phone had been dumped on the side of the road, a witness testified Friday in his double murder trial.
The state’s 61st witness, Special Agent Peter Rudofski of the South Carolina Division of Law Enforcement, plotted 4,820 GPS coordinates of Murdaugh’s Chevrolet Suburban on the day of the murders on a series of maps that were shown to the members of the jury. Rudofski also documented Murdaugh’s speed rating.
Murdaugh left his family’s sprawling hunting estate in Islandton, South Carolina, at 9:06 p.m. on June 7, 2021, to visit his mother in nearby Almeda.
According to prosecutors, Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were already dead, shot near the property’s kennels at 8:50 p.m.
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Alex Murdaugh (left) and his attorney Dick Harpootlian listen to testimony from Chris Wilson at Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial at the Colleton County Courthouse on Thursday, February 9, 2023. (Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post and Courier/Pool)
On the way to Almeda, Alex Murdaugh drove at 42 mph as he approached the spot where Maggie’s iPhone was found the next morning.
“After passing that place, does the vehicle start to accelerate?” asked lead prosecutor Creighton Waters at the Colleton County courthouse.
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“Yes,” Rudofski replied, indicating that the SUV began driving at 45 mph.
General Motors only released the new data on Murdaugh’s truck last weekend after contacting prosecutors and letting them know they had uncovered the additional information.
Alex Murdaugh’s Chevrolet Suburban drove down Moselle Road and passed the location where the phone of his murdered wife, Maggie Murdaugh, was found on June 8, the morning after the murders. (South Carolina Attorney General’s Office)
A previous witness could only tell the jury when the car was parked or driven. Rudofski walked the jury through Murdaugh’s movements throughout the day, including her arrival at his Hampton law firm, then known as Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth & Detrick, at 12:24 p.m.
He returned home from the law office at 6:42 p.m. and on both legs of the trip he did not exceed 65.8 mph.
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On Murdaugh’s trip to Alameda, he drove at a top speed of 74.4 mph and parked “closer to the wood line and outbuildings,” Rudofski testified.
Prosecutors have suggested that Murdaugh may have disposed of the murder weapons while visiting his mother.
The movements of Alex Murdaugh’s Chevrolet Suburban on June 7, 2021, the day of the double murder.
After spending 20 minutes at his mother’s house, Murdaugh returned to Moselle driving at a top speed of 80.16 mph on the potholed Moselle Road.
His average speed was also faster than any other trip he took that day, the witness said.
Waters asked Rudofski if he had ever driven so fast on Moselle Road when he responded with lights and sirens to an emergency.
“I haven’t,” he replied, pointing to the large deer population and the roughness of the trail.
Alex Murdaugh’s Chevrolet Suburban is shown parked near the crime scene on June 8, 2021, the morning after the murders. (South Carolina Attorney General’s Office)
Murdaugh told investigators that he was at his mother’s house for 45 to 50 minutes.
His mother’s caretaker, who was present during the visit, testified that Murdaugh had pressured her to corroborate this false statement if anyone asked.
Murdaugh arrived at the pound at 10:05:39 p.m. and called 911 at 10:06 p.m. sharp, according to records presented to juries in a Walterboro, South Carolina, courtroom.
Murdaugh told the 911 dispatcher that he had checked Paul and Maggie’s pulses before calling. Their bodies were about 30 feet away.
A photo of the Murdaugh family taken days before Paul and Maggie Murdaugh were shot to death. From left, Buster, Paul, Maggie and Alex Murdaugh. (Defense Exposure)
Rudofski then led the jury through an excruciatingly detailed timeline of the night of the murders, which has already been presented through other witnesses, including phone calls, text messages and other data.
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Prosecutors said Rudofski would likely be his last witness before turning over to the defense.
