A Georgia woman who paid $25 to kill Paul Murdo’s white hat at a Moselle hunting auction returns the trophy to his older brother Buster to “help him find peace.”
Shelby Freeman, 28, said she attended the auction to secure a piece of criminal history for the state of South Carolina — but regretted the purchase after feeling the mask did not belong to her and wanted it returned to its rightful owner.
Paul Murdo was wearing the hat just days before he was brutally executed by his father at the family’s hunting lodge on the Moselle – where his mother, Maggie, was shot dead. He was seen wearing it in a video shown during the six-week trial of his father, Alex Murdaugh, for double murder.
Shelby told WhatsNew2Day.com she also spent just under $550 on Christmas decorations and a nightstand, which included bullets, lottery tickets and beer mug labeled with the names of family and friends. She says she has also offered to return the favor, but Buster, 28, has not yet responded.
“I reached out to Jim Griffin (the Murdue family’s attorney), and said I felt the right thing to do was to offer them back,” she said, adding that she hopes Buster “can find some peace.”
Shelby Freeman, 28, said she offered to return her property to Buster Murdo after feeling she was “not the rightful owner.”
Alex Murdaugh (right) with his murdered wife, Maggie, 52, and son Paul, 22 (center) with his son Buster (left)
Thousands flocked to a Georgia auction house on March 23 when the Murdaugh family’s South Carolina property went up for sale
Freeman says she felt particularly compelled to return a white mask she had bought at auction after discovering that Paul was wearing it in a stunning video shown at Alex Murdaugh’s massive murder trial.
A jury viewed a cellphone video of Paul wearing the mask as he excitedly carried a birthday cake for his father at their beach home in Edisto Beach, South Carolina.
Taken in 2021, just days before Alex slaughters his wife Maggie and son Paul, family and friends gleefully sing “Happy Birthday” to the murderous patriarch while a jubilant Paul carries a slab cake.
Explaining why she attended the auction, Freeman said that like many Americans she felt an “emotional attachment” to the case and even went to trial several times.
I just wanted to go and see it on a personal level, I’ve been following the case since the boat crash. I stayed at the auction all day, just to be a part of it.
Buster and I are about a similar age, and he seemed very nervous during the trial. People can’t imagine what he’s going through, but no one can understand his situation.
A white hat previously worn by Paul Murdeau was bought at Murdue’s estate auction just days before his execution by his father’s legal descendant.
Alex Mordo’s defense showed footage of the father surrounded by friends and family on his birthday during his trial, in which Paul is seen wearing a white mask that was later returned to Buster after being purchased at auction.
Freeman said she spent just under $550 at auction on a handful of items, and only started bidding after she “caught it” when some quality properties were cheap.
Along with various Christmas decorations and serving dishes, she also purchased a nightstand believed to be either Alex or Paul, which she was surprised to find was still filled with items from the murdered family’s past.
But after she was brought home, she confessed to her husband: ‘It didn’t belong here, I didn’t feel like the right owner… There might have been some guilt, but more than a feeling that it should be its rightful place.
After reaching out to offer her possessions, Murdough’s attorney Jim Griffin responded within hours to her request and said Buster “would love” to have Paul’s mask back.
Freeman, who confirmed she felt sorry for him after watching his ordeal throughout the trial, added, “I thought the worst case was that I spent $550 to bring (Buster) some joy.”
“People go to Buster, but you can’t replace a mother and a brother.” I hope he can find some peace. Many people on the Internet are attacking him and speculating, but he hasn’t done anything wrong.
The items for sale were sourced from the Murdaugh family’s home in South Carolina, which recently sold for $2.6 million.
Shelby also offered to return a nightstand she had bought at Mordo’s auction, which was still surprisingly full of items including lottery tickets and bullet shell casings.
The 28-year-old spent just under $550 on a number of items in the auction, including Christmas decorations, paintings, and a nightstand.
The mask was purchased by Freeman for $25 at a Georgia auction on March 23, where thousands flocked to purchase items from the family’s hunting lodge on the Moselle.
Views from inside the auction’s warehouse showed rows of possessions laid out on long tables, as potential bidders sorted through the items that once filled the prominent Southern family’s sprawling country home.
The auction comes nearly a year after the 1,700-acre mansion where the Murdoch family used to live was listed for $3.9 million.
The Moselle estate eventually sold on Wednesday for $2.6 million, with proceeds from the sale going to legal fees owed to Alex Murdo, Palmetto State Bank, Buster Murdo and victims of the infamous 2019 boat crash, according to the reports. Fox Carolina.
The new owners, James Eyre and Geoffrey Godley, decided to vacate the house after their purchase and put all of its contents up for auction.
Potential buyers searched a variety of former properties from inside the auction room, where long tables were strewn with deer antlers, mounted turtle shells, decorative paintings, and figurines from a Christmas nativity scene.
Among the more expensive items for sale were lamps decorated with turtle shells, which sold for $800, a yeti mug for $400, and tall fixtures for a hefty price tag of $10,000.
Bidders and auctioneers at the Murdue real estate auction on Thursday afternoon
A wall of hunting trophies is up for auction from Morduz Palace
Hunting crossbow for sale after being cleared from Mordo property
The first item auctioned was an animal trap, priced at $500, which was later followed by a pair of rocking chairs for $850, and a sofa from the family mansion, which fetched $30,000 after an intense bidding war.
In addition to the Murdue camouflage jersey, several pairs of hunting boots can be seen in stock, along with a cap bearing a South Carolina Highway Patrol baseball cap.
Above the cases of rifle shells, boxes of unused rifle bullets were offered for auction, along with a hunting crossbow, rifle scopes, and what appeared to be a rifle or shotgun case.
After purchasing a bike that belonged to Maggie Murdo, Erin Craig told DailyMail.com that he was planning on displaying the item in a storefront because it would “better serve its purpose where people can see it instead of going into someone’s backyard.”
Craig added that he paid more than $3,000 for a variety of items from Murdo’s auction, including an American flag, some Richard Alexander Murdo glasses, and one of Paul Murdo’s wallets.
Erin Craig, of Colleton County, South Carolina, with Maggie Murdo’s bike after purchasing the lot at auction
