SC - Paul Murdaugh, 22 and mom Margaret, 52, found shot to death, Islandton, 7 June 2021 #7

[Juvenile]

I called this 10 days ago and thought I was crazy at the time….

My “outside the box” theory is he hired the hit on himself and it failed, a la Sneaky Pete S1e8. But who would it benefit? Family from insurance $$? More honorable than suicide?

 

[katydid23]

Or.....maybe AM changed his mind at the last minute and moved. I can't imagine just standing there waiting for someone to shoot me.

Especially if it's pointed at your head...

Gosh, there's gonna be Dateline, 20/20 & 48 hours episodes about all of this. Not to mention Netflix, Hulu , and numerous podcasts. Full feature film? Actual hardcover books, for sure.

Robert Durst's trial is in deliberation as we speak. And this is after there was the film, the 6 part documentary-series, the books, hundreds of podcasts and blogs, and forums...

 

[Shan67]

All this makes me wonder.....Did Alex's father really die of natural causes?? I know he wasn't in good health,but it seems plausible his death could have been speeded along.
We probably won't ever know.

 

[JaimeInLA]

Oh, I see what you’re saying. I dunno though, I don’t see Curtis admitting to assisted suicide, if he could truthfully admit to a staged shooting to take the heat off the embezzlement.

But the counterpoint is that there are much more serious charges looking, and the suicide scenario somehow sounds better.

I’m still leaning towards taking this at face value, but we’ll see.

Curtis didn’t admit to anything. This is Alex‘s story. Alex is the one that confessed. We have no idea if Curtis is going to dispute the story or agree with it.

 

[evilwise]

I am cautiously optimistic that finally the real truth may be close to coming out.

inb4 Smith "commits suicide" in police custody

 

[sunshineray]

Oh, I completely agree with you. I don’t think that is a reason to murder, or even dislike anyone. But you and I are not conservative old men in the deep South. To them, it’s a horrible sin to be gay. It’s sad, and wrong, but they see it as it terrible choice.

I'm sorry I just don't see it as something one of those men would hire a hit man for. Now kids SS age or a little younger, yeah I could see something getting out of hand, tormenting and abuse going very wrong, resulting in death. That I could see happening. IMO it's probably what did happen.

 

[clearskies1]

I can't wrap my brain around the possibilities -- assisted suicide to look like murder? A fake murder later claimed to be an assisted suicide?? And then there's the 2 murder weapons used at Moselle. Brain freeze. JMO.

 

[worm]

Curtis didn’t admit to anything. This is Alex‘s story. Alex is the one that confessed. We have no idea if Curtis is going to dispute the story or agree with it.

In the warrant it says that he admitted to being there at the shooting and disposing of the gun.

 

[StrangerThanFiction]

It looked like they were bringing groceries in from the car.

The video clearly showed them taking bags from the house and loading them into the car. Auntie was likewise trying to load a 6’ tall potted tree into the car.

 

[worm]

Especially if it's pointed at your head...

I’m trying to imagine the whole bizarre conversation leading up to the fired shots from both participants. It had to be just as crazy for the shooter.

 

[Beren]

Hmm… Either:
1. Suicide plan was real but Cousin Eddie just couldn’t cross that line into murder. I suppose it’s possible that AM holds onto CES’ hand with gun to his own head saying “do it!” but CES yanks it away at last minute therefore causing only a graze. CES then drives off terrified and ditches gun. AM calls brothers and is a psychological mess for still being alive. Motive for $10M in life insurance is to cover all the money he embezzled. It’s not for BM to live in luxury. It’s for his whole family to get out of the mess he caused. He himself said he needs to work on rehabilitating the relationship with his family, clients, colleague… or something like that. It was his last ditch attempt to fix things for them?

OR

2. It was supposed to just be a simulated attempt on his life “see! I told you someone’s out to get me and my family!” to take the heat off of him as the double homicide investigations circled in closer. In the beginning they were adamant it WASN’T a suicide attempt (who was asking?) because they reflexively thought that made him look guilty about killing his family. Then they realized AM trying to kill himself for insurance money might put him in a better light.

Scenario 1 makes it more likely CES is not the hitman and likely AM did it himself or the double homicide is unrelated.

Scenario 2 makes it likely CES would do anything for AM and what are the chances AM has a whole ’nother shady associate he can task his dirty deeds with and trust that secrets will be kept?

 

[Colorado303]

I'm not buying this.

Me either. While I have no problem believing Alex is behind his own scheming self being shot in the head, I have a hard time accepting it was a suicide attempt.
IMO physical evidence (bullet casings, etc) don’t really fit the suicide attempt, but more importantly AM doesn’t strike me as the kind of man who’d kill himself without a fight. Nor does he strike me as a the martyrly father type.

However I could see him telling the person asked to shoot him that’s what he was doing, then returning fire on the guy claiming he must be the one who killed Paul and MM.

Just a hypothesis and not one I’m wed to.

 

[Lux et Veritas]

Something seems very wrong with this latest bombshell. Eddie clearly sucks at "assisted suicide". LOL

1) If the deal was to kill Alex - as in DEAD - why didn't Eddie make sure he completed the job (multiple shell casings and Alex was still just grazed!)?

2) Why did Alex enlist Eddie to allegedly kill him, why involve anyone else in his own death? (Unless Eddie is a professional hit man - in which case, he double sucks because he failed to complete the hit?!) Speaking as a former State Farm professional: typically, a life insurance policy will still pay out for a suicide death as long as the policy's been in force for at least two years.

3) If Alex was allegedly intent on dying / having himself killed for the $10M insurance payout to Buster, why did he ID a blue pickup / provide sketch details of a "suspect" - essentially throw Eddie under the bus? On a lonely stretch of back road with no witnesses, who would have known? Why didn't Alex keep his mouth shut to protect Eddie?

 

[Steelhead]

So if the plan succeeded, what was in it for CES? Seems like they would have caught up with him eventually and charged with murder. Makes no sense.

 

[Beren]

If he wanted it to appear as though he was murdered, when in fact he was committing suicide, why didn't he stage it at Moselle where he could bleed out like a truly suicidal person. Why was this staged on a road where good samaritans would inevitably rescue him right away?

If it was a failed suicide attempt, why didn't he immediately report that to police? Was he silent to protect his accomplice, the accomplice he could not describe for a sketch artist? Why didn't he just admit it? Was he hoping police would think something more sinister occurred, or was he suddenly bashful about wanting to commit suicide with a oxycodone habit and embezzlement allegations?

Really very great points!

Possibly he didn’t want BM to be the one to find him dead?

 

[Luna20]

But I still don't know whether the plan was actually about suicide or not. Maybe they made that explanation up after it became clear that LE was close on their heels.

Maybe it was originally a staged shooting, to make it seem like there were killers out to get the family after all. Then when AM sensed it was imploding, they devised this noble suicide plan---designed to benefit his beloved son.

Somehow I have a hard time believing this story---I don't think Daddy M has a generous bone in his body.

I agree. I still think AM is playing up mental anguish. Feeling so much grief that he just wanted to die and have money for his son.

 

[Luna20]

Would Alex’s insurance pay out differently for suicide versus murdered?

 

[Beren]

Something seems very wrong with this latest bombshell. Eddie clearly sucks at "assisted suicide". LOL

1) If the deal was to kill Alex - as in DEAD - why didn't Eddie make sure he completed the job (multiple shell casings and Alex was still just grazed!)?

2) Why did Alex enlist Eddie to allegedly kill him, why involve anyone else in his own death? (Unless Eddie is a professional hit man - in which case, he double sucks because he failed to complete the hit?!) Speaking as a former State Farm professional: typically, a life insurance policy will still pay out for a suicide death as long as the policy's been in force for at least two years.

3) If Alex was allegedly intent on dying / having himself killed for the $10M insurance payout to Buster, why did he ID a blue pickup / provide sketch details of a "suspect" - essentially throw Eddie under the bus? On a lonely stretch of back road with no witnesses, who would have known? Why didn't Alex keep his mouth shut to protect Eddie?

1). Either Eddie is not a killer and couldn’t cross that particular line or it was always staged

2). He just increased the life insurance and it hadn’t been long?

3). blue pick up might have been on the surveillance video. He was clearly vague on purpose with the sketch.

 

[Colorado303]

Life insurance I assume. Alex was supposed to die.

Do you really think so?

 

[otto]

Would Alex’s insurance pay out differently for suicide versus murdered?

I don't know much about insurance but, having watched too many murder documentaries, it seems that accidental death (eg: murder, fall off a mountain) pays best.