Alleged accomplice accused of helping disgraced lawyer Alex Murdaugh enters plea deal

A erstwhile banker and alleged accomplice of disgraced ineligible scion, Alex Murdaugh, has agreed to a blameworthy plea successful helping with immoderate of his fiscal crimes.

Court records obtained by WCIV amusement that Russell Laffitte pleaded blameworthy to respective national fraud charges past week and volition walk 5 years successful prison. 

The records amusement that Laffitte besides agreed to wage $3,555,884.80 successful transgression restitution. Additionally, the erstwhile slope CEO volition not beryllium allowed to enactment astatine immoderate federally insured slope oregon recognition national without anterior consent.

At the clip of the crimes, Laffitte served arsenic the CEO of Palmetto State Bank and allegedly utilized his presumption to transportation retired the schemes. He besides acted arsenic the conservator oregon fiscal typical for Murdaugh’s idiosyncratic wounded clients. 

ALEX MURDAUGH, ACCOMPLICE ORDERED TO PAY MILLIONS IN MONEY SCHEME AFTER HOUSEKEEPER'S DEATH

New mugshots for Alex Murdaugh and Russell Laffitte from Wednesday, July 20, 2022. (Richland County Detention Center/Kershaw County Detention Center)

Laffitte's household founded the slope successful 1907 successful the aforesaid agrarian municipality of Hampton, South Carolina, wherever the Murdaugh’s excessively would emergence to prominence.

During his earlier testimony, Laffitte claimed that helium simply did what Murdaugh asked of him and was not alert of the lawyer's alleged schemes.

In 2022, a assemblage convicted Laffitte of helping Murdaugh bargain astir $2 cardinal from clients.

ALEX MURDAUGH MAY BE CALLED TO TESTIFY IN FEDERAL TRIAL FOR SOUTH CAROLINA BANKER RUSSELL LAFFITTE: REPORT

Alex Murdaugh's astir caller mugshot  (South Carolina Department of Corrections)

Laffitte was sentenced astir 7 months aft the condemnation to 7 years successful situation and was ordered to wage $3.5 cardinal successful restitution.

However, Laffitte’s condemnation was overturned successful November 2024 erstwhile an appellate tribunal determined that, during his trial, the removal of 2 jurors was mishandled and violated Laffitte’s Fifth Amendment rights.

Laffitte was fired from the slope soon aft the allegations came to airy that helium helped Murdaugh and Murdaugh’s lawyer person and assemblage roommate, Cory Fleming, bargain from a ineligible lawsuit named Hakeem L. Pinckney, a deaf jock rendered a quadriplegic pursuing a rollover car mishap that earnestly injured his household members. 

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Alex Murdaugh looks implicit grounds of a cheque brought to him and his attorneys successful the treble execution proceedings of Alex Murdaugh astatine the Colleton County Courthouse successful Walterboro.  (Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post and Courier/Pool)

A justice ordered Murdaugh and Fleming to wage millions to an security institution successful January 2025 aft they conspired to bargain astir $4 cardinal successful security funds from his housekeeper's household pursuing her death.

Murdaugh's housekeeper, Gloria Satterfield, seemingly tripped and fell connected the beforehand steps of the Murdaughs' location connected their South Carolina hunting estate, Moselle, and died aboriginal successful a hospital.

The $4 cardinal Murdaugh stole from the Satterfield household is portion of the 100 fiscal crimes charges filed against Murdaugh involving millions successful stolen funds from his erstwhile instrumentality steadfast clients.

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Murdaugh had antecedently been ordered to service 40 years for his fiscal crimes successful national tribunal and 27 years for his fiscal crimes successful authorities court.

Those sentences came connected apical of his beingness condemnation for sidesplitting his wife, Maggie, and youngest son, Paul, successful 2021. 

A Colleton County assemblage recovered the disgraced lawyer blameworthy of shooting Maggie and Paul adjacent canine kennels connected the family's hunting property successful June of that year. Prosecutors accidental helium was trying to make a distraction from his mounting fiscal crimes, which were opening to travel to airy astir that time. 

Fox News Digital's Audrey Conklin and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report. 

Stepheny Price is simply a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, nationalist transgression cases, amerciable immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas tin beryllium sent to [email protected]