PETA sends letter to auction house asking Murdaugh’s hunting trophies be donated

PEMBROKE, G.A. (WCSC) - An animal rights organization wrote a letter to the Georgia auction house that is in charge of selling items acquired from the Murdaugh family’s Moselle estate.

The letter from PETA requests that the hunting trophies, such as the turtle shell lamps and the deer mounts, be donated to the organization’s Museum of Atrocities Against Animals.

“Violence should have no place in our society, and we’re hoping you’ll donate the tortoise-shell lamps, mounted heads, and other decorations created at the expense of animals’ lives,” PETA President Ingrid Newkirk said in the letter. “Your donation would help educate people about the trade in exotic-animal parts and hunting and encourage them to value kindness over cruelty.”

The doors to the sale opened at 4 p.m. Thursday in Pembroke. The owners of Liberty Auction told WTOC they expect around 1,000 people to come out to the auction, about double their normal crowd.

The final paperwork for the Murdaugh’s Moselle property was filed in court on Wednesday. The property’s new owners are James Ayer and Jeffery Godley, according to the deed. They bought the over 1,700-acre property for more than $2.6 million. It was originally listed for $3.9 million, our sister station in Greenville reports.

The property includes a 5,275 sq. ft. home, guest cottage, equipment shed, fishpond, shooting range and kennels.

Most of the money from the sale will go toward settlements the Murdaugh family is named in.