Russell Laffitte Sentenced To Five Years In Federal Prison

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Russell Laffitte — the disgraced former Lowcountry banker who enabled Alex Murdaugh‘s brazen theft of client settlement funds — has been sentenced to five years in federal prison.

U.S. district court judge Richard Gergel imposed the sentence Monday afternoon in Charleston, South Carolina, following Laffitte’s April guilty plea to six federal counts: conspiracy, wire fraud, bank fraud, and three counts of misapplying bank funds. The ruling formalizes the plea agreement prosecutors hammered out with Laffitte after the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated his original 2022 convictions due to judicial error related to a questionable eleventh hour jury reshuffling initiated by Gergel.

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THE CRIMES

As FITSNews has reported extensively, Laffitte’s downfall began when he agreed to serve as conservator and personal representative for multiple Murdaugh clients — a role that gave him access to millions of dollars in settlement funds. Rather than protecting those clients, Laffitte funneled their money into loans and transactions that directly benefited himself and Murdaugh.

From 2011 onward, Laffitte:

• Negotiated at least 21 fraudulent transactions, including $1.3 million in disbursements from a single client.
• Personally pocketed $110,000 in conservator and representative fees — income he deliberately failed to report to the IRS.
• Approved a $750,000 “beach house” loan that instead covered Murdaugh’s overdrafts and personal debts.
• Misapplied nearly $284,000 in bank funds intended for farming, using them instead to cover Murdaugh’s loans.

In July 2021 — months before Murdaugh’s double-murder crimes unraveled the entire Lowcountry dynasty — Laffitte also authorized a $400,000 transfer to cover Murdaugh’s massive overdrafts, knowing the loan proceeds were fraudulent.

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RELATED | RUSSELL LAFFITTE FACES SECOND SENTENCING

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THE FALLOUT

At sentencing, federal prosecutors emphasized the devastating breach of trust Laffitte committed against vulnerable victims.

“As of today, Russell Laffitte and Alex Murdaugh have both been sentenced to federal prison, and their victims have been made financially whole,” U.S. attorney Bryan Stirling said. “The victims put their trust in Laffitte and Murdaugh after suffering serious injuries and losing loved ones, and they were exploited for financial gain.”

In addition to the five-year sentence, Gergel ordered Laffitte to:

• Pay a $20,000 fine and $600 special assessment.
• Forfeit $85,845.73 to the government.
• Remain barred for life from serving as a director, officer, or decision-maker at any federally insured bank without prior regulatory approval.

Laffitte has already paid $3.55 million in restitution, another condition of his plea deal.

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Even as his federal punishment was handed down, Laffitte’s legal troubles deepened on the state side. On Thursday, September 25, 2025, the man who once claimed he was merely a “pawn” in Murdaugh’s schemes pleaded guilty in to eight state charges, including breach of trust with fraudulent intent and criminal conspiracy.

His sentencing in state court is scheduled for October 13, 2025.

Laffitte’s plea deals and prison sentences mark another milestone in the accountability phase of the ‘Murdaugh Murders’ crime and corruption saga. Murdaugh himself was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to 22 counts of financial fraud. He’s also been sentenced to more than two decades in prison on state financial crimes – and received two life sentences for the July 2021 murders of his wife and younger son, although those convictions are being challenged on appeal.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …

As a private investigator turned journalist, Jenn Wood brings a unique skill set to FITSNews as its research director. Known for her meticulous sourcing and victim-centered approach, she helps shape the newsroom’s most complex investigative stories while producing the FITSFiles and Cheer Incorporated podcasts. Jenn lives in South Carolina with her family, where her work continues to spotlight truth, accountability, and justice.

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