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Shelby Freeman: Georgia woman returns Paul Murdaugh's white cap to his brother Buster, says she 'felt it was the right thing to do'

The cap was worn by Paul Murdaugh just days before he was brutally executed by his father Alex Murdaugh at the family's Moselle hunting lodge

WALTERBORO, SOUTH CAROLINA: A woman from Georgia who purchased a white visor worn by Paul Murdaugh, the victim of a brutal double murder committed by his father, Alex Murdaugh, has gifted the item back to Paul's older brother, Buster Murdaugh. Shelby Freeman, 28, attended the auction to secure a piece of South Carolina criminal history but regretted the purchase and wanted to give it back to its rightful owner.

The cap was worn by Paul Murdaugh just days before he was brutally executed by his father at the family's Moselle hunting lodge where his mother Maggie was also shot to death. Freeman said, "I reached out to Jim Griffin (the Murdaugh family lawyer) and said I felt like the right thing to do was to offer them back," the Daily Mail reported.

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'I felt like the right thing to do was to offer them back'

Freeman said, "I reached out to Jim Griffin (the Murdaugh family lawyer), and said I felt like the right thing to do was to offer them back." She added that she hoped "Buster is able to find some peace." Freeman also spent just under $550 on Christmas ornaments and a nightstand, which contained bullets, lottery tickets, and beer koozies labeled with family and friends' names. She offered to return those items as well, but Buster had not yet responded.

'Buster and I are similar in age, and at the trial, he seemed very nervous'

Explaining why she attended the auction, Freeman said, "I have been following the case ever since the boat crash. I stayed at the auction all day,  just to be part of it." She added, "Buster and I are similar in age, and at the trial, he seemed very nervous. People can't imagine what he is going through, but no one being so vicious can fathom his situation."

Freeman said that she felt particularly compelled to give back the white visor she had bought at the auction after discovering it was worn by Paul in striking footage played at Alex Murdaugh's blockbuster murder trial. The jury saw cellphone video showing Paul wearing the visor while excitedly carrying a birthday cake to his dad at their beach house in Edisto Beach, South Carolina. Taken in 2021, just days before Alex butchered his wife Maggie and his son Paul, family and friends gleefully sang 'Happy Birthday' to the murderous patriarch while a beaming Paul carried the sheet cake.

'I am so moved by the kindness shown by a purchaser'

After reaching out to offer the possessions back, Murdaugh's lawyer Jim Griffin responded within hours to her request and said Buster 'would love' to have Paul's visor back. He tweeted, "I am so moved by the kindness shown by a purchaser of a piece of Murdaugh family memorabilia. She has offered to give it to Buster because she knew he would want it as a keepsake reminder of the good times he shared with Paul. Buster accepts your kind offer. Thank you, SF."

'Glad to bring small happiness in tragedy'

Freeman said, "I thought, the worst case is that I spent $550 to bring (Buster) some part of joy," adding that she felt sorry for him after watching his ordeal throughout the trial. She wrote, "Buster and I are very close in age. All I could think in the trial was I truly cannot imagine. I impulse bought things, as I thought I wanted a reminder of this case. But I think my TRUE reminder is always spread God's love. Glad to bring small happiness in tragedy."

Many people have been critical of Buster Murdaugh online, but Freeman defended him, saying, "People have a go at Buster, but you can't replace a mother and brother. I hope he is able to find some peace, a lot of people online are hitting out at him, speculating, but he hasn't done anything wrong."

The items up for sale were sourced from the Murdaugh family home in South Carolina, which was recently sold for $2.6 million. The auction comes almost a year after the 1,700-acre mansion where the Murdaughs lived was listed for $3.9 million.