Murdaugh ‘had time’ to kill: DA

Damning data dump

Alex Murdaugh searched online for a popular South Carolina restaurant soon after saying he found the bullet-riddled bodies of his wife and son, according to a timeline given in his murder trial.

The disgraced 54-year-old legal scion’s phone records show he “searched ‘Whaley’s Edisto’ in Safari browser” at 10:40 p.m. — while he was still at the bloodsoaked crime scene, and just 15 minutes after the first cop arrived.

The search came in a detailed timeline provided by prosecutors of Murdaugh’s alleged movements based on phone and GPS data from June 7, 2021, the day his wife, Maggie, 52, and their son Paul, 22, were gunned down at their holiday home.

The restaurant he searched is one of the oldest in Edisto — where the Murdaughs’ main house was located — and has a menu item called “Maggie’s favorite burger.”

It is not clear if there is a connection to the Murdaughs, who for generations were one of the area’s most prominent — and powerful — families.

The timeline suggests the search came just over half an hour after Murdaugh’s car was shown arriving at the dog kennels where his wife and son were slaughtered, Colleton County prosecutors charge. Paul was killed at close range with two shotgun blasts, and Maggie was shot four or five times with a rifle, authorities said.

Murdaugh called 911 just 17 seconds after his car arrived there — yet told the dispatcher he’d already checked the bodies and even tried to turn them over. There was “blood everywhere … I see brain,” he can be heard saying during the call.

The timeline presented by prosecutors earlier put Murdaugh still at the family home until 9:07 p.m. that night — more than 15 minutes after investigators believe his wife and son were likely killed.

Murdaugh told investigators that he’d been away for hours visiting his ailing parents.

‘On the run’

Before leaving the house, Murdaugh’s phone caught him appearing to be rushing around, recording about 70 steps per minute.

“He was a busy guy right then, was he?” prosecutor Creighton Waters asked South Carolina Law Enforcement Division agent Peter Rudofskiin Colleton County Court.

“It appears,” the agent replied. When Murdaugh drove away — texting his then dead wife that he’d “b rite back” — he raced through country roads at more than 74 mph, well over the 55 mph speed limit, prosecutors said.

His journey took him past the spot where his wife’s phone was found the day after she was killed.

When he reached his mother’s home nearby, he parked near outbuildings in woodland away from the main house, the records show. Prosecutors have claimed he stashed key evidence there.

After visiting his mom, Murdaugh then drove even faster back to his house — hitting up to 80 mph — where he eventually said he found his wife and son’s bodies, prosecutors said.

During cross-examination, defense attorney Phillip Barber ripped the accuracy of the data, stressing it did not accurately show that Murdaugh was walking faster than usual after the alleged time of the crime.

The defense also claimed that the speeds he drove were not unexpected given that he was traveling country roads he knew well.