Stephen Smith’s death has haunted the South Carolina community for years — but it was a Netflix documentary, released around the same time as the double murder trial involving a prominent family, that brought attention back to the case.
Smith, a 19-year-old former classmate of Buster Murdaugh’s, was found dead in July 2015 on rural Sandy Run Road in Hampton County, near the Murdaugh estate.
Recent Netflix and HBO documentaries have claimed that rumors have been circulating in the small town that Buster and his younger brother Paul were likely involved in Smith’s death.
There were also rumors, given as advice to investigators at the time, that Buster and Smith were romantically involved, the documentaries claimed.
On Monday, Buster issued a statement denying “vicious rumors” about his involvement in Smith’s death.
Last week, the Smith family announced that the 19-year-old nursing student would be exhumed for a private autopsy. Now, eight years later, SLED has revealed that they are convinced his death was a murder.
Steven Smith, 19, a former classmate of Buster Murdo’s, was found dead in July 2015 on Sandy Run Country Road in Hampton County, near the Murdo estate.
The death of Buster Murdo’s former colleague, Stephen Smith, is now being ruled a murder just a day after Buster denied ‘vicious rumors’ that he was involved in Smith’s death.
Recent Netflix and HBO documentaries have debunked rumors circulating in the small town that Buster and his younger brother Paul were likely involved in Smith’s death.
Who is Stephen Smith?
Stephen Smith was found dead on July 8, 2015, on Sandy Run Country Road in Hampton County, near the Murdo estate.
The 19-year-old nursing student had blunt head trauma.
His body was found three miles from where his car ran out of gas.
The teen’s death was initially ruled a hit-and-run, but Highway Patrol officers have since claimed that they did not believe the scene was consistent with a traffic accident.
His family’s attorneys also indicated that Smith’s wallet was left inside the car – and he never made any phone calls to his family at the time.
Smith’s mother, Sandy, was not going to leave her wallet behind and said he would have at least called his sister.
If he had to walk home, he would have walked through the woods – and there was a corn field in which he would have walked. “He was making sure nobody saw him,” she said.
She also said she wanted to find the “real cause” of her son’s death, and stuck to her opinion that he could have been “walking in the woods” if his car had broken down – not the road.
Recent Netflix and HBO documentaries have debunked rumors circulating in the small town that Buster and his younger brother Paul were likely involved in Smith’s death.
Buster Murdo, second from right, son of Alex Murdo, looks on at his father during his trial
Why is his death now considered murder?
Last week, the Smith family announced that the 19-year-old nursing student would be exhumed for a private autopsy.
But on Tuesday, SLED revealed that they did not need an exhumation of Smith’s body to convince them his death was a murder.
The Bland-Richter Law Firm, which represents the Smith family, made the announcement Tuesday after a call with South Carolina Division of Law Enforcement Chief (SLED) Mark Kiel.
SLED officials said they “will be present and will participate in any exhumation of Stephen’s body to gather further evidence.”
Bland-Richter co-founder Eric Bland said SLED is committed to joining forces and resources as the country advances Smith’s exhumation.
“We have an opportunity to right eight years of wrongs, and we intend to do just that,” Bland said.
Attorney Ronnie Richter said on Tuesday TMZ Live that there are “a number of facts that clearly point to murder” which include “Steven’s body from below the torso was unharmed, no car parts were found at the scene, his shoes still on, and he supposedly walked three miles in the dark without using his phone.” cellular.
SLED reopened the investigation into Smith’s death in 2021, citing new evidence uncovered during the investigation into the murders of Booster’s mother Maggie Murdaugh and his brother Paul.
But according to Bland, SLED officials said they are waiting until this announcement of Murdaugh’s murder trial because of their concern about witness testimony.
SLED officials revealed that they did not need to exhume Stephen Smith’s body to convince them his death was a murder. Eric Bland and Ronnie Richter said in a joint statement.
However, they will be present and will participate in any exhumation of Stephen’s body to gather more evidence. We are committed to finding out what really happened, and getting the peace and justice the Smith family deserves.
SLED reopened the investigation into Smith’s death in 2021, citing new evidence uncovered during the investigation into the murders of Booster’s mother Maggie Murdaugh and her brother Paul.
Buster Murdaugh, 26, the only surviving son of disgraced legal descendant and double murderer Alex Murdaugh, on Monday denied “vicious rumors” of his involvement in Smith’s death.
The GoFundMe of Stephen Smith, who passed away in 2015, exceeded its goal. Buster Mordo has long been associated with Smith
Why was Buster Mordo linked to Stephen Smith’s death?
Buster Murdaugh, 26, the only surviving son of disgraced legal descendant and double murderer Alex Murdaugh, on Monday denied “vicious rumors” that he was involved in Smith’s death.
Smith and Buster were classmates in high school.
After Smith’s death, cops were tipped off about an alleged homosexual affair between the pair that was circulating at the local high school.
Smith’s mother, Sandra, also claims that her son may have been the victim of a hate crime committed by the Murdaugh clan.
Two HBO and Netflix documentaries recently aired allegations that Buster was involved in a romantic relationship with Smith.
A Netflix documentary explored their alleged relationship, although Buster at the time declined to comment.
More than half of the people interviewed during the inquest stated that they had heard of rumors of Buster Mordo’s possible involvement in Smith’s death – but he was never questioned.
On Monday, Buster issued a statement denying “gloomy rumors” about his involvement in Smith’s death.
He wrote: ‘I categorically deny any involvement in his death, and my heart goes out to the Smith family. I demand that the media immediately stop spreading these defamatory comments and rumors about me.
Two documentaries about the Mordo murders in recent months have revealed new details and allegations about five of the six deaths potentially linked to the powerful family.
In a statement Monday, shared by Alex Murdaugh’s attorney Jim Griffin, Buster called the allegations “baseless.”
What did the Netflix and HBO documentaries reveal about Smith’s death?
Two documentaries about the Mordo murders in recent months have revealed new details and allegations about five of the six deaths possibly linked to the powerful family. Including the death of Stephen Smith in 2015.
Netflix’s “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal” is set to stream on February 22, 2023. It arrives at the end of Murdaugh’s six-week trial, which began on January 23.
The three-part series delves into the family’s possible involvement in the mysterious deaths of Smith, Mallory Beach, and Gloria Satterfield – all of which took place between 2014-2021.
“Victims of car hits are not usually found in the middle of the road,” said journalist Will Foulkes.
In the docuseries, it is revealed that Buster Mordo’s name came up several times during the investigation into Smith’s death, CourtTV mentioned.
Smith’s mother hired private investigator Steve Peterson who said several people he interviewed said they had heard Buster was involved in Smith’s death.
Some friends told investigators that Smith and Buster were more than friends, Peterson said.
He also noted that Buster’s name appeared several times on highway patrol tapes, but he was never interviewed by authorities.
The docuseries also revealed that some of Smith and Webster’s colleagues said that Smith was having car trouble and called Buster for help.
Smith’s friend Olivia claimed on the series: ‘I think he picked Stephen and was tricking Stephen into thinking they were going to take him home, but I think they got a little knocked on the road and that’s when it all started to fall apart. I think the Mordoz family did whatever it took to keep everyone’s mouth shut that night.
Smith’s sister Stephanie said in the docuseries that Alex Murdaugh’s brother, Randy Murdaugh, called the family the day Smith was found dead to tell him he wanted to take the case pro bono.
HBO’s “Low Country: The Murdaugh Dynasty” is a three-part series released in November 2022, months before the trial.
The HBO version touches on the family’s background and its impact on society.
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