Convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh was sentenced to 27 years in prison on Tuesday for financial crimes.
The 55-year-old former lawyer pleaded guilty in a South Carolina court earlier this month to 22 counts related to fraud, money laundering and other white-collar crimes after being accused of plotting to steal millions from his law firm and clients, ABC News reported.
South Carolina prosecutors were pursuing 101 total charges against Murdaugh, the New York Post reported.
Alex Murdaugh sentenced to 27 years for financial crimes in South Carolina state court https://t.co/7Nj0Zvth6n pic.twitter.com/yoBTMWnOYc
— New York Post (@nypost) November 28, 2023
The sentence was the harshest ever imposed by South Carolina for white collar crimes, The State noted. Murdaugh agreed under the deal to serve 85 percent of his sentence, totaling more than 22 years in prison, the outlet noted. Prosecutor Creighton Waters labeled the deal a “practical life sentence,” the outlet reported.
Estimates of exactly how much money Murdaugh stole varied. He was charged with stealing $8 million, according to The State, but Waters estimated that he actually stole more than $12.4 million, the New York Post reported.
Murdaugh is still awaiting sentencing for federal financial crimes, to which he has already pleaded guilty, ABC 7 reported. He also faces additional state charges for insurance fraud and filing a false police report, the outlet reported.
Murdaugh was sentenced to life in prison in March for murdering his 22-year-old son and wife in June 2021. Murdaugh maintained his innocence during the murder trial. He did, however, admit on the stand that he had lied about his location at the time of murders. Murdaugh is currently seeking to overturn his murder conviction, ABC 7 reported.