THIS is the chilling moment an eerily calm woman who slaughtered her parents told police: “Cheer up, you’ve got the bad guy”.
Virginia McCullough stabbed her mother Lois, 71, multiple times and hit her with a hammer “like someone playing the xylophone badly” at their home in Chelmsford, Essex.
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Virginia McCullough chillingly told police she killed her parents
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John and Lois McCullough have not been seen since August 2018
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McCullough was sentenced to life in prisonCredit: PA
She also killed her 70-year-old father-of-five John by poisoning him with a “cocktail” of prescription drugs crushed in his drink.
A twisted McCullough then hid her father’s body in a “makeshift tomb” in a downstairs bedroom
The next day, she wrapped mom in a sleeping bag and left her in the closet upstairs.
Their bodies lay undiscovered for four years until police were called following concerns about a welfare report in September 2023.
Evil MCullough has now been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 36 years.
She previously admitted murdering the pair between June 17 and June 20, 2019 – although the pair had not been seen alive since last August.
Now, gruesome footage has been released of the moment McCullough was finally arrested at the home where she lived with the rotting bodies of her parents.
She seems eerily calm as she tells the officers “I will cooperate” as they handcuff her.
McCullough then points down the hall before asking, “Can we go in there for a second just so I can tell you something?
“I have to tell you something about what’s up on the top floor, too.”
The officers and McCullough pass a wooden door, where the killer says, “My father’s body is inside.”
As the group stands in a separate room, she is asked about her mom, but she explains that it’s “a little more complicated.”
McCullough tells the officers that they can find her Lois’ body in the closet “behind the bed in the back by the sink.”
She adds: “I knew it would come to this eventually. It’s okay for me to serve my sentence.”
Even when the cops warn her that they can’t question her properly yet, McCullough continues to reveal all about her gruesome crimes.
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McCullough calmly told police where her parents’ bodies were
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She says she deserves what’s coming to her
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The killer later broke down in custody
A policeman then relays the information to her – stating that John’s body is under the bed in the downstairs room and Lois is “up in the cupboard next to the sink”.
McCullough cuts him off and tells him “it’s a double wardrobe” before signing the receipt.
She creepily adds: “Cheer up, at least you caught the bad guy.
“I deserve to get whatever punishment awaits me because it’s the right thing to do and it might give me some peace of mind.”
McCullough later admits that her parents’ bank card, which she has used “for the last few years”, is in her purse.
The footage then cuts to the killer in the detention suite giving detailed instructions on where to find the knife she used to kill her mother.
McCullough shows his first clue as he tells the police what he considers to be “the most terrifying detail”.
Cracking his voice, the monster adds, “So, downstairs under the stairs, there’s a few storage boxes and stuff, and in the middle, I think it’s in both boxes or a bag or something…if you want to shut up after this I will, but you’re welcome. ..it’s a hammer.
“Yeah, I know. I know, but I’m trying to help you find everything. There’ll still be blood on it. It’s rusted, but it’ll still have marks.”
John and Lois’ devastated family pay tribute
In a joint statement, the family of John and Lois said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to Essex Police and in particular the Major Investigation Team for their tireless work in trying to get the best possible justice for our beloved parents.
“We also want to thank the other specialist services for their invaluable contribution to this investigation, and everyone who supported our family during the past year.
“Our dad was caring and hardworking and had a passion for education and writing. He worked tirelessly in his career in university education, which spanned many years.
“Dad enjoyed many hobbies, and golf and snooker were his favorite. When we think about dad, we remember the many jokes he told us and made us laugh.
“Our mother was kind, caring and considerate. Mom was happy with her grandchildren.
“She had friends from all over the world through her friendly hobby, many of whom she wrote to for several decades. Mom had a passion for history and maintained a keen interest in the royal family.
“Mom and Dad loved their trips to the sea together, where they enjoyed many walks and visited many different attractions.
“Their love for the sea was so great that they hoped to move to the coast in retirement. Mom and Dad always enjoyed the time they spent with us, their family was their pride and joy.
“Our family was devastated and broken by the death of our parents who were so cruelly taken from us.
“As we try to move forward with our lives, we will remember the happy times we enjoyed with them.
“Our mom and dad are forever in our hearts, we love them and miss them beyond measure.
“We request privacy as we continue to grieve the loss of our dear parents.”
The court heard that she killed her parents “in cold blood” in the summer of 2019.
She poisoned her father, who was suffering from diabetes, and then left him to die before going to bed.
The next morning she put on Wilko’s gardening gloves and hit her mom with a hammer while she sat in bed listening to the radio.
Lois pleaded “what are you doing?” as she desperately tried to protect herself from the blows.
After she decided the hammer was “too messy,” McCullough took a kitchen knife and stabbed Lois, whom she described as a “lucky pisser,” eight times in the chest and neck.
McCullough “manipulated and abused her parents’ goodwill for financial gain” and lied about her own success.
She continued the scams after their deaths by constantly lying about her mom and dad’s whereabouts in a twisted attempt to cover her tracks.
The day after the fatal attack on her mother, she sent one of her four sisters a text from Lois’s phone which read: “your dad and I are at the seaside in Walton this week. Mum x”.
The killer would claim that her parents went on holiday and hid behind the Covid quarantine to drive away worried relatives.
All the while she used their bank cards to spend their hard-earned pensions – spending £21,193 on gambling.
In total, she made more than £135,000 after her parents’ murder.
The police even visited the home on August 18 last year for a welfare check.
She was interviewed but the officers did not know the bodies were inside and no search was carried out as there was no indication of anything suspicious.
Her web of lies finally unraveled in September 2023 when a concerned GP raised the alarm about missed appointments.
I have never seen a murderer so calmly confess his gruesome crimes
By Holly Christodoulou, Digital Court Editor
In all my years covering some of the most high-profile court cases, I have never seen a confession as chilling as that of Virginia McCullough.
Despite the brutal cold-blooded murder of both parents, there is nothing to indicate even the slightest hint of remorse.
I’ve seen body camera arrest footage where the killers feign surprise, ask for a cigarette, break down, and a few “you’re kidding” type outbursts directed at the police.
Most murderers just keep lying in the hope that the deception will lead to a not guilty verdict.
Never has a monster so calmly confessed to her crimes with such brutal honesty that even the cops tell her to stop.
In her blue tank top and pink T-shirt, you could be forgiven for thinking that McCullough is simply gossiping with her neighbors about something creepy she read in a local Facebook group.
She even signed her confession as if she were signing for an Amazon package.
Chillingly, McCullough didn’t flinch as she led police past the bedroom where her father lay dead for four years.
McCullough seemed more bothered by the sleeves on her shirt than the gruesome revelation she made.
In fact, the only emotion she showed was when she mentioned the bloody hammer she used to kill her helpless mother. And even then, there’s not a real tear in sight.
Thank God the police – according to McCullough – caught the villain because who knows how long she would have continued to live in that house of horrors with Lois and John unable to rest in peace.
A missing person’s investigation was launched, but McCullough claimed her parents were traveling and would return in October.
Suspicious police then began a murder investigation and raided the house to finally arrest McCullough.
They discovered a “homemade mausoleum” where John’s body was buried.
McCullough stacked masonry blocks together, which were held in place with filler, to make the tomb, then covered it with blankets and paintings.
There were also 11 layers of “plastic and other material” covering his body, which was wrapped in a sleeping bag.
An autopsy revealed that John had a number of medications in his system that were not prescribed for him.
While Lois was stabbed eight times in the neck, shoulder and chest.
The court was told that Professor Nigel Blackwood, the psychiatrist who assessed McCullough, found her behavior after the horror to be “more typical of psychopathic personalities”.
This is due to her “lack of emotional empathy, coupled with the callous nature of the fatal attacks”.
He said that although she had traits of autism spectrum disorder, she “knew what she was doing was wrong”.
Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Constable Rob Kirby of Essex Police said McCullough had killed her parents “in the interests of self-preservation and personal gain”.
He added: “McCullough lied about almost every aspect of her life, maintaining a charade to deceive everyone close to her and clearly taking advantage of her parents’ goodwill.
“She is an intelligent manipulator who chose to callously kill her parents, with no thought for them or those who continue to suffer from their loss.
“The details of this case shock and horrify even the most experienced homicide detectives, let alone any right-thinking member of the public.
“It follows that the extended family of John and Lois, understandably, could never have assumed or foreseen that McCullough would be capable of carrying out these murders before committing to this level of fraud.”
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McCullough stabbed her mother to death and poisoned her fatherCredit: PA
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She then used her parents’ bank cards after running into debtCredit: PA
Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: HIS Education