The son of the clerk of court who oversaw the trial of Alex Murdaugh in South Carolina has been accused of wiretapping by state agents.
Agents with South Carolina’s Law Enforcement Division took Jeff “Colt” Hill into custody late Tuesday afternoon. Hill, 34, was the Information Technology Director for Colleton County. He is also the son of Colleton County Clerk of Court Becky Hill, who’s been accused of jury tampering by Alex Murdaugh’s defense team. Becky Hill denied the allegation in an affidavit filed by state prosecutors.
A warrant for Jeff Hill’s arrest claims he recorded a telephone conversation using his county computer on July 20, 2023, between two people whose names are redacted in the warrant. One on the call was likely a county employee because the warrant states that records showed a computer using an IP address assigned to Jeff Hill recorded the call.
“The defendant was not a party to the communication, and neither victim was aware they were being recorded nor had they given consent for their conversation to be recorded,” the warrant stated.
FITSNews reported Tuesday night that Hill was accused of recording a call between a deputy county administrator and another person. That outlet first reported Jeff Hill’s arrest. Will Folks, founder and editor of FITSNews, also reported agents seized Becky Hill’s cellphone on Tuesday night shortly after her son’s arrest. A SLED spokesperson did not respond to a message seeking comment on the report about Becky Hill’s cellphone.
Alex Murdaugh and his attorneys appear for a pretrial hearing on Feb. 21, 2023 (via Law&Crime network). Inset: Jeffery Colton Hill (via Colleton County Jail).
“That’s what really has people buzzing is that Becky Hill connection,” Folks told Law&Crime.
Jeff Hill appeared in court Wednesday morning at the Colleton County Jail. Court records show he posted a $20,000 bond and was released. The media was not allowed into the brief hearing.
According to a news release from SLED, state agents are working with the public integrity unit of the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. That unit investigates officer-involved shootings and uses of force along with public corruption.
Alex Murdaugh awaits his verdict, Colleton County Court Clerk Rebecca “Becky” Hill reads the verdict sealing Murdaugh’s fate on March 2, 2023 (Law&Crime Network)
A SLED spokesperson told Law&Crime on Wednesday the investigation is active and ongoing. SLED referred to Jeff Hill as the former Colleton County Information Technology Director, indicating he’s no longer employed by the county.
Law&Crime requested Jeff Hill’s personnel file in September and received it earlier this month. The file did not mention the wiretapping allegation.
Jeff Hill was the director of IT for Colleton County during Alex Murdaugh’s double murder trial earlier this year. There’s no information available to the public that would indicate wiretapping occurred during the trial.
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