Murdaugh accomplice Cory Fleming sentenced to 46 months in prison

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – A longtime friend and accomplice of Alex Murdaugh was sentenced to 46 months in prison Tuesday.

Fleming pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud back in May.

The charges stem from Fleming's involvement in a scheme to defraud the estate of Murdaugh's former housekeeper, Gloria Satterfield, out of over $4,000,000 in a wrongful death settlement.

Satterfield died after a so-called slip and fall accident at the Murdaugh's home in 2018. Court records allege that Murdaugh recommended that the housekeeper's estate hire Fleming represent them and film a claim against Murdaugh to collect from his homeowner's insurance policies.

Murdaugh's insurance companies settled the estate's claim for $505,000 and $3,800,000. But Fleming and Murdaugh are accused of misappropriating the funds, which they diverted for personal use.

Fleming was also held accountable for misappropriating funds from the family of Hakeem Pinckney, a man who died "after being rendered quadriplegic in a car accident."

Prosecutors said that "Fleming used $8,528.46 of the estate's funds to issue two checks to pay for a private plane to attend the College World Series, and he wrote a $4,560 check from the estate's trust account directly to Murdaugh claiming the funds were legitimate expenses. Finally, Fleming used $89,133.44 remaining in the trust account to issue a check for Murdaugh's benefit rather than properly disbursing the funds to the estate." His role in that scheme was taken into consideration during sentencing.

Fleming faced a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

He is required to surrender himself immediately.