Stephen Smith's body exhumed, second autopsy performed in South Carolina homicide

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Stephen Smith's body was exhumed and a second autopsy was performed in South Carolina over the weekend as part of an investigation into his 2015 homicide, his family's lawyers announced.

Attorney Eric Bland, who represents the slain man's mother, Sandy Smith, disclosed the development in a series of tweets Sunday. 

"Stephen, for many, many years, I can only imagine, was not so much at peace in his grave," Bland said in a video message on Twitter. "He probably was pounding on his coffin, saying to anybody who could hear, 'I was not hit by a car, but I was intentionally killed,' but now we‘ve told him that we hear his voice."

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Stephen Smith's body was exhumed over the weekend and a second autopsy was performed as part of the investigation into his homicide. (Findagrave.com/Courtesy of FitsNews)

Bland and his partner, Ronnie Richter, said Smith was transported from his grave for a second autopsy and returned to his final resting place over the weekend. 

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The coroner and at least 12 South Carolina Law Enforcement Officers (SLED) helped with the logistics, he added.

A GoFundMe drive raised nearly $120,000 to pay for the exhumation and autopsy – more than seven times the amount requested.

"I now believe that Stephen can really rest at ease because SLED and our team are going to do everything possible to find out just how he died," Bland wrote in a tweet. 

Bland and Richter announced Monday a $35,000 reward for "information that leads to the identification and conviction of the person or persons responsible for Stephen Smith's death."

Smith's body was found in the middle of Sandy Run Road July 8, 2015, in Hampton County, South Carolina, and a pathologist who conducted the autopsy ruled his death a hit-and-run over the objection of investigators.

Stephen Smith poses with his mother, Sandy Smith, at his high school graduation. He was killed July 8, 2015, in what South Carolina authorities initially designated a hit-and-run. A second autopsy was performed over the weekend.

There were no tire marks in the road, debris from a collision or abrasions on Smith's body indicating he'd been dragged on the asphalt. His car was three miles away and out of gas, with his wallet and keys still inside.

SLED opened a homicide investigation into Smith's death on June 23, 2021 – about two weeks after Alex Murdaugh fatally shot his wife, Maggie, 52, and his son, Paul, 22, based on information obtained during the double murder probe. 

Rumors swirled for years that the family may be connected to the young man's death, growing in intensity in the wake of Alex's conviction for the slaying of his wife and son. 

Alex Murdaugh sentenced to life in prison after conviction in double murder trial at the Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro, South Carolina, March 3, 2023. (Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post and Courier/Pool)

The highway patrol report references the Murdaugh name dozens of times, and Smith's family repeatedly suggested that he may have been having a secret affair with Alex's only living son, Buster, who issued a statement denying any connection to his former classmate's death.

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Sandy Smith's lawyers further quelled the speculation last month when they said there's no evidence linking the Murdaughs with the slaying. 

FitsNews exclusively reported last week that South Carolina authorities have zeroed in on Patrick Wilson and Shawn Connelly as persons of interest – and they are not Murdaughs. Their names briefly appeared in the 2015 highway patrol report. Wilson and Connelly couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

A graphic showing where investigators found Stephen Smith's body in Hampton County, South Carolina. (SCDPS)

"Both Wilson and Connelly lived in the area near where Stephen Smith's body was found, and there is information obtained by SLED investigators which has reportedly drawn a sharper focus on them as potential suspects," wrote FitsNews founder Will Folks.

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Bland previously told Fox News Digital that the killing of Smith, who was openly gay, was likely a hate crime. 

Anyone with information is urged to contact SLED at 803-737-9000 or tips@sled.sc.gov.