South Carolina investigators have reportedly exhumed the physique of Stephen Smith, as authorities have reopened their investigation into the homosexual teenager’s mysterious homicide in 2015.
Smith’s physique was exhumed on Friday for an unbiased post-mortem, sources near the investigation told WCIV.
The 19-year-old was discovered lifeless on the facet of a street in Hampton County in July 2015. An authentic post-mortem dominated his dying as a potential hit and run accident. After almost eight years, Smith’s dying was officially ruled a homicide final month.
Interest in Smith’s dying has been renewed because the double-murder conviction of Alex Murdaugh earlier this month. Murdaugh’s surviving son, Buster, has been linked to Smith and the 2 attended highschool collectively.
Smith’s mom, Sandy, launched a profitable fundraiser final month to conduct an unbiased exhumation and unbiased post-mortem on her son. She linked Buster to her son’s dying in a letter sent to federal investigators the place she accused native regulation enforcement of botching her son’s dying investigation.
However, South Carolina authorities have reportedly zeroed in on two 25-year-olds Patrick Wilson and Shawn Connelly, each of whom have been initially implicated in Smith’s dying case, Fitsnews revealed in a case file Thursday.
The duo have been youngsters on the time and lived just some miles from the place the Smith’s mangled physique was discovered — not removed from the 1,700-acre Moselle property where Alex Murdaugh murdered his wife Maggie and son Paul six years later.
Wilson’s stepfather tipped investigators off to the boys’ involvement within the dying about 5 months after Smith was killed on the encouragement of Alex Murdaugh’s older brother, Randy Murdaugh.
Wilson allegedly instructed his stepdad that Connelly — who has an extended historical past of visitors infractions and DUIs — was driving a automobile that “struck and killed Stephen Smith.” His father then handed the knowledge on to authorities at Randy Murdaugh’s insistence.
At the time of Wilson’s confession, he was dealing with tried homicide fees for an incident that was not instantly clear. Those fees have been dropped shortly after by a solicitor who “served at the pleasure of the Murdaughs,” one Hampton historian instructed the outlet.
Within one 12 months of Smith’s dying, Randy Murdaugh filed two motorized vehicle accident lawsuits in opposition to Connelly on behalf of purchasers, each of which have been dismissed by Murdaugh-friendly judges.
Despite the confession, neither man was intensely scoured by the unique investigative crew. Police, who initially mentioned the dying “appeared to be a homicide,” finally dominated Smith was a sufferer of a hit-and-run.
Police haven’t publicly excluded the Murdaughs from their investigation — nevertheless one regulation enforcement supply instructed FitsNews they’ve proof the authorized household is harmless of all ties.
Police mentioned final week they “quickly” put Buster Murdaugh on their radar as a part of the reopened investigation following rumors that he killed Smith with the intention to disguise a secret love affair between the 2 baseball teammates.
Buster has “unequivocally” denied “vicious rumors” that he was concerned within the homicide as he continues to grieve the lack of his mom and brother and offers with the imprisonment of his killer father.
