Othram

Alex Murdaugh is seeking assistance from Othram, a lab that identified Bryan Kohberger and solved the Lady of the Dunes cold case, to analyze DNA evidence in his murder trial.

Alex Murdaugh's attorneys are requesting independent DNA testing by Othram Inc. on evidence from Maggie Murdaugh's fingernails to support his defense in a retrial. Prosecutors argue prior testing by South Carolina's law enforcement showed only partial DNA profiles. Othram has previously assisted in high-profile cases like the Idaho student murders and Rachel Morin's killing.

South Carolina prosecutors oppose Alex Murdaugh's requests for independent DNA testing on Maggie Murdaugh's fingernail clippings and electronic access to case materials during his retrial. The defense seeks a retrial after the state Supreme Court overturned his murder convictions due to jury taint from a clerk's conduct.

A 70-year-old Illinois man, Albert L. Zigler, has been charged with first-degree murder in the 1993 killing of Randy Gail Sperino, a mother found beaten to death in a rural field. DNA evidence processed by Texas-based genealogy company Othram led to Zigler's identification, ending a 30-year cold case and providing closure to the victim's family.

Forensic genetic genealogy identified Robert Carey as the suspect in two Massachusetts cold cases from 1991 and 1993, linking the strangling of Cherie Bishop and the rape of Donna Bell. Carey, who died in 2025, lived near both crime scenes, and the breakthrough was achieved through DNA analysis and collaboration with the Texas-based lab Othram.