Where is Buster Murdaugh? Alex’s older son is ‘collateral damage’ after mom and brother’s murders
Buster Murdaugh is reportedly a completely different person after the murder of his mother and younger brother. The 52-year-old Maggie and 22-year-old Paul were killed at the family's estate in Colleton County, South Carolina, in June 2021 and Alex Murdaugh has been accused of the crime.
Now, according to Buster’s two friends who spoke with PEOPLE, the 26-year-old is not doing well and has separated himself from the outside world. The pals reportedly said that Buster recovered his things from the 1,770-acre property soon after the duo’s death, and never went back. He also did not visit the beach house, where his mother used to live before her tragic end.
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An ex-college classmate of Buster told PEOPLE: “He's not doing well at all. He really withdrew after everything happened. Before, he'd text immediately. His phone was surgically implanted in his hand or something, like you'd send a text 24/7 and he'd respond, and he loved to chat. Now he doesn't respond to most texts, or if he does, it's one or two words. He has really closed off and built walls around himself.”
Another childhood pal said, “Buster is collateral damage to his father's situation. I think he's developed this attitude of 'I'm gonna shut people out before they shut me out.' His circle of friends got really small really fast. He's really down. He's gained some weight, he's grown a beard, as much as he can. He doesn't make eye contact and he doesn't really engage like he used to. He looks tired. He's aged like 10 years in the past year. He has bags under his eyes and he just looks miserable. It's just a shame.”
It has been said that Buster did not appear in court when his father pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder — stemming from Maggie and Paul’s killings —- on Wednesday, July 20. “He doesn't really talk about it. I don't think he knows what to believe,” the friend added.
Alex has reportedly been put behind bars without bail after he was charged last week for the double murder. Besides, the 54-year-old disgraced lawyer faces over 90 criminal charges, including “misappropriating money from his law firm, defrauding clients of funds and computer crimes.” He has also been accused of cheating his ex-housekeeper’s family of a $4.3 million insurance settlement after she died in a suspicious situation at his house.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Alex’s associate was also indicted on charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and bank fraud. Former Palmetto State Bank CEO Russell Laffitte was reportedly a conservator for Alania Spohn and Hannah Plyler after their mother and brother died in an accident in 2005. The young sisters were represented by Alex.
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But Laffitte along with Alex allegedly robbed 355,000 for himself and $990,000 for his crime partner. The victims’ lawyers Eric Bland and Ronald Richter said, “The girls viewed Russ Laffitte as a father figure and trusted him to navigate the waters ahead for them and to guide them. It is difficult to express the emotions and disappointment of learning years later that those who had sworn to protect the Plylers chose instead to prey upon them. Russ Laffitte and Alex Murdaugh plundered their conservator accounts and treated it like their own personal slush fund.”