'Who Steals From a Deaf Kid?' Allegedly, Alex Murdaugh

We're learning more details about the alleged financial fraud of Alex Murdaugh, including claims that the South Carolina lawyer stole from a deaf quadriplegic he represented following a car accident, and a former highway patrolman he represented following an injury in the line of duty. Murdaugh, already accused of defrauding the sons of his late housekeeper out of nearly $3 million, will soon face eight more lawsuits from ex-clients who claim he stole between $90,000 and $750,000 from their pockets, Fox News reports. "It is really infuriating, to be honest," Justin Bamberg, a Democratic state representative and attorney representing the former clients, tells the outlet. "Who steals from a deaf kid?"

According to Bamberg, the family of a young deaf man rendered a quadriplegic in a 2011 car accident was entitled to a $309,000 payout after he died but received none of it. The man's mother, also involved in the crash, was defrauded out of $89,000, while a passenger never saw the $375,000 she was entitled to, Bamberg says. He adds another client of Murdaugh only learned from law enforcement about a $750,000 payment he was to have received. Prosecutors say Murdaugh—facing more than 50 charges, some relating to his botched suicide attempt—used a fraudulent bank account while defrauding a highway patrolman out of $125,000 and defrauding three other clients in separate personal-injury lawsuits out of $338,000, $90,000, and $70,000.

Indictments indicate another client in an "accidental reconstruction" suit was defrauded out of $100,000, while another $112,500 was misappropriated following a wrongful death settlement, Fox reports. Additionally, a longtime friend of the Murdaugh family was allegedly defrauded out of $85,000 from medical insurance liens. It's unclear which of these clients Bamberg may represent. He expects to file the lawsuits shortly. Meanwhile, Murdaugh's attorneys filed a motion Tuesday to reduce their client's $7 million bond, noting the 53-year-old has less than $10,000 in his bank account and "cannot pay his phone bill," reports the State. His assets, including a nearly 1,800-acre property, are controlled by court-appointed financial overseers, the lawyers add. (More Alex Murdaugh stories.)