Family says Paul Murdaugh received death threats after fatal boating crash

In the aftermath of a boozy boating crash in 2019, Paul Murdaugh, who was arrested and charged in connection with the fatal incident, started getting death threats from strangers online. On June 7, both he and his mother were shot and killed on their sprawling 1,770-acre property in South Carolina.

At the time of his death, Paul was awaiting trial on one count of boating under the influence (BUI) causing death and two counts of causing great bodily injury in connection with the February 2019 accident that killed 19-year-old Mallory Beach.

Paul’s uncle, John Marvin Murdaugh, told ABC News in an interview on “Good Morning America” that while Paul began receiving threats after the crash, no one believed them to be serious.

“I didn’t think it was a credible threat,” he said. “If it was, I would have tried to do something or notify someone.”

Randolph “Randy” Murdaugh, another uncle, in the same interview added that he did not know anyone who would wish to hurt the family members.

“You hear all this talk on social media with regard to Paul but I don’t know of anybody who would truly be an enemy or truly want to harm them,” he said.

“It’s just hard to imagine somebody can be so sick as to do this, intentionally kill people like that,” Randy said. “I mean, we see it in the world. We see it on the news. But you don’t think it’s going to happen in your small community, to your family.”

Alex Murdaugh, a prominent South Carolina attorney, discovered the bodies of his wife, Margaret Murdaugh, and his 20-year-old son earlier this month near the outdoor dog kennels on the property, the Island Packet reported. More than a week later and the circumstances surrounding the double shooting remain murky.

Police have not yet made any arrests, nor have they named any suspects or persons of interest at this time.

“We need help finding who did this,” Randy said. “The person that did this is out there.”

Anyone with information about the case should call the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division tip line at 803-896-2605.