Why Virginia McCullough killed her parents and lived with their bodies

Virginia McCullough knew why the police had smashed by her entrance door, however a part of her questioned why it took them so lengthy to find she had murdered her mother and father. “Cheer up, no less than you’ve got caught the dangerous man,” she calmly advised the officers handcuffing her. Neighbours thought John and Lois McCullough had retired to the seaside, however the actuality was they have been callously poisoned by their daughter. Why did she do it?

The goings-on contained in the McCullough household house in Nice Baddow close to Chelmsford, Essex, have been changing into more and more secretive in 2019.

Family members have been requested to remain away and buddies have been advised Mr and Mrs McCullough had retired to the Clacton space on Essex’s sunshine coast.

The grotesque actuality was very completely different. It might be 4 years earlier than anybody came upon the horrors that passed off behind closed doorways on Pump Hill.

John McCullough, a retired enterprise research lecturer, had been fatally poisoned and the 70-year-old’s physique was hidden in a crudely-built tomb made out of breeze blocks and blankets.

The corpse of his 71-year-old spouse, Lois, was stashed behind sleeping luggage and duvets in an upstairs wardrobe.

Mrs McCullough had been battered with a hammer and stabbed, however she too had additionally been poisoned with prescription treatment administered by her daughter.

Virginia McCullough, 36, was handed a life sentence at Chelmsford Crown Court docket for his or her murders, to serve a minimal of 36 years, on Friday.

“The curtains have been at all times drawn and also you could not see if anyone was in the home,” stated Phil Sargeant, who lived subsequent door to the McCulloughs for 20 years.

“They have been identical to shadows, they’d transfer in a short time from A to B.”

Mr Sargeant now is aware of why there was such secrecy at his neighbours’ home.

“I discover it fairly troublesome even to say that Virginia murdered her mother and father or killed her mother and father,” he added.

“She’d come throughout as fairly nice; she was humorous, she was irreverent as nicely. She had a darkish sense of humour.”

In September 2023, Essex Police took a name from Essex County Council’s safeguarding crew.

A GP at Mr and Mrs McCullough’s registered follow had raised a priority for his or her welfare, having not seen them for a while.

Their absences had been defined by their daughter, who provided a spread of excuses for every appointment she cancelled on her mother and father’ behalf.

Conveniently for her, the nation had been in Covid-enforced lockdowns for a big time period they’d not been seen.

However when police spoke to McCullough, it turned clear one thing was not including up – why have been her mother and father at all times out of the realm?

Alan Thomson, who rented a tv to the McCulloughs, additionally had his suspicions.

It adopted a cellphone name from McCullough, abruptly cancelling the rental on her mother and father’ behalf.

When Mr Thomson’s employees arrived on the household house to select it up, they have been advised they might not enter the property – and the TV was already ready by the entrance door.

“I acquired the sensation maybe she was a little bit of a fantasist, however no means would I’ve thought she’d be a assassin,” he stated.

When police raided the property, it was not the primary time they’d visited.

Weeks previous to the invention of the our bodies, McCullough invited officers inside to debate an allegation of an assault in opposition to her.

Solely she knew the intent of this name, however some believed she was testing the water.

Finally, the assault allegation got here to nothing.

McCullough was extra forthcoming when officers returned in September 2023.

“I did know that this present day would come ultimately,” she confessed.

“I need to get what’s coming, sentence-wise, as a result of that is the fitting factor to do after which that may give me a little bit of peace.”

Paperwork recovered contained in the property painted an image of a girl desperately attempting to maintain her mother and father from discovering a monetary black gap she had dug.

Abusing their goodwill, she had been dwelling lease free, spending their cash and racking up massive bank card money owed of their names.

Solid letters confirmed McCullough had been tricking her mother and father into pondering they’d misplaced cash by scams. In actuality, it was cash “frittered away” by their daughter.

To them, she was well-qualified, suitably employed and dealing laborious in direction of changing into an artist – a future she claimed would additionally convey monetary advantages for her mother and father.

As a substitute, she was reaping the monetary rewards of manipulating, abusing and making the most of her mother and father’ kindness.

In whole, McCullough benefited from £149,697 because of murdering her mother and father – mixed from their pensions and spending on their bank cards, in addition to promoting belongings.

The court docket additionally heard she spent £21,000 on on-line playing between 2019 and 2023.

Her lies – and the concern of being uncovered – finally led to her cruelly killing her mother and father.

Paul Hastings, a greengrocer on the Vineyards buying centre close to their house, had additionally seen their disappearance.

He was advised by McCullough that her mother and father, who used to buy items from his store, have been not dwelling in Nice Baddow.

Mr Hastings stated her peculiar nature meant she might say issues with out arousing a lot suspicion.

“She got here in to the store and stated ‘The police are after me, they suppose I killed my mum and pop’,” Mr Hastings stated.

“I assumed ‘That’s a bit odd’ however didn’t suppose the rest of it, I simply thought it was her eccentric nature.”

He defined McCullough would typically go to his store 4 occasions a day, earlier than disappearing for the following fortnight.

Debbie Pollard stated McCullough would go to the flower store she ran and bombard her with meals and presents.

“We knew she was odd however I’d by no means have dreamt she would ever be able to doing what she really did,” she stated.

“She’s really lived in that home all these years along with her mum and pop’s stays in there – that horrifies me. Horrifies me.”

Each Mr Hastings and Ms Pollard each stated McCullough had additionally pretended to be pregnant, even making a pretend bump underneath her clothes.

All through her sentencing on Friday, McCullough stared on the ground, impassive.

It was solely when she listened again to her interview with police, describing how she murdered her mom, that she started to weep.

“She seemed so harmless; she was simply sat there listening to the radio,” McCullough advised the officers.

“I did go in thrice to construct up some gumption however I knew I needed to get it completed and might’t hesitate.

“She was simply gazing me in disbelief.”

Det Supt Rob Kirby, from Essex Police, stated her in any other case composed response in court docket was typical of the “thought of, meticulous” assassin she was.

“All through the course of our investigation, we’ve got constructed an image of the huge ranges of deceit, betrayal and fraud she engaged in,” he stated.

“It was on a stunning and monumental scale.

“McCullough lied about nearly each side of her life, sustaining a charade to deceive everybody near her and clearly making the most of her mother and father’ good will.

“She is an clever and adept manipulator who selected to kill her mother and father callously and and not using a thought for them or those that proceed to undergo because of their loss.”