Why did Virginia McCullough kill her parents and live with their bodies

Virginia McCullough knew why the police had broken down the front door, but part of her wondered why it took so long to find out she had killed her parents. “Glad, at least you caught the bad guy,” he calmly told the officer who handcuffed him. Neighbors thought John and Lois McCullough had retired to the seaside, but in reality they were poisoned by their daughter. Why did they do it?

Events at the McCullough family home in Great Baddow near Chelmsford, Essex, became increasingly secretive in 2019.

Relatives were asked to stay away and friends were told Mr and Mrs McCullough had retired to the Clacton area on the sunny coast of Essex.

The shocking reality is very different. It would be four years before anyone would know the horrors that unfolded behind closed doors at Pump Hill.

John McCullough, a retired lecturer of business studies, has been fatally poisoned and his 70-year-old body is hidden in a crudely-constructed grave of breeze blocks and blankets.

The body of his 71-year-old wife, Lois, was placed in the upper wardrobe.

Mrs. McCullough had been battered with a hammer and stabbed, but she had also been poisoned with prescription drugs administered by her daughter.

Virginia McCullough, 36, sentenced to death at Chelmsford Crown Court for Murder that, to serve a minimum of 36 years, there.

“The curtains were always drawn and you couldn’t see if anyone was home,” said Phil Sargeant, who lived next door to the McCulloughs for 20 years.

“He’s like a shadow, he’ll go from A to B very quickly.”

Mr. Sargeant now knows why there is such a secret in his neighbor’s house.

“I think it’s very difficult to say that Virginia killed her parents or killed her parents,” he said.

“He’ll find it quite amusing; he’s funny, he’s also rude. He’s got a dark sense of humour.”

In September 2023, Essex Police took a call from Essex County Council’s safeguarding team.

A GP in the registered practice of Mr and Mrs McCullough has raised concerns for their welfare, having not seen each other for some time.

His absence was explained by his daughter, who gave various reasons for each canceled appointment for her parents.

Conveniently for him, the country has been in a lockdown where Covid has not been seen for a long time.

But when the police spoke to McCullough, it became clear that something didn’t add up – why were his parents always out of the area?

Alan Thomson, who rented the television to the McCulloughs, also had his suspicions.

It follows a call from McCullough, suddenly canceling the rental for his parents.

When Mr Thomson’s staff arrived at the family home to collect it, they were told they could not enter the property – and that a TV had been set up on the doorstep.

“I think maybe he’s a bit fantastical, but I never thought he’d be a killer,” he said.

When the police raid the property, that’s it not the first time they visited.

Weeks before the discovery of the body, McCullough called officers inside to discuss the assault charges against him.

Only he knows the purpose of this call, but some believe he is testing the waters.

In the end, the assault charges came to nothing.

McCullough is more forthcoming when officials return in September 2023.

“I knew this day would come,” he admitted.

“I deserve what’s coming, sentence-wise, because that’s what I had to do and maybe give me some peace.”

Documents found inside the property paint a picture of a woman trying desperately to keep her parents from discovering the financial black hole she dug herself.

Blaming his will, he lives rent-free, spending money and has huge credit card debt in his name.

The fake letter showed McCullough had tricked his parents into thinking they had lost money through fraud. In fact, it is money “frittered away” by the daughter.

For them, they have good qualifications, suitable jobs and work hard to become artists – a future they claim will also bring financial benefits to their parents.

Instead, they reap financial rewards for lying, abusing and taking advantage of their parents’ kindness.

In total, McCullough benefited from £149,697 as a result of his parents’ murder – combined from his pension and credit card spending, as well as the sale of assets.

The court also heard he spent £21,000 on online gambling between 2019 and 2023.

Her lies – and her fear of being exposed – eventually lead her to brutally kill her parents.

Paul Hastings, a greengrocer at the Vineyards shopping center near his home, also noticed her disappearance.

He was told by McCullough that his parents, who bought things from his shop, no longer lived in Great Baddow.

Mr Hastings said his eccentric nature meant he could speak without raising suspicion.

“He came into the shop and said ‘The police are after me, they think I killed my mum and dad’,” Mr Hastings said.

“I thought ‘That’s a bit odd’ but didn’t think anything of it, I just thought it was eccentric.”

He explained that McCullough would visit the store four times a day, before disappearing for the next two weeks.

Debbie Pollard said McCullough would visit the flower shop she ran and bombard her with food and gifts.

“We know he’s weird but I never would have dreamed he’d be able to do what he did,” he said.

“He actually lived in that house for years with his mum and dad’s remains there – that shocked me.

Mr Hastings and Ms Pollard both said McCullough also pretended to be pregnant, even creating a fake bump under her clothes.

During Friday’s sentencing, McCullough stared at the floor, emotionless.

It was only when he listened to the interview with the police, describing how he killed his mother, that he began to cry.

“He looked innocent; he was just sitting there listening to the radio,” McCullough told officers.

“I went in three times to build up my gumption but I knew I had to finish and I couldn’t hesitate.

“He just stared at me in disbelief.”

Det Supt Rob Kirby, of Essex Police, said the reaction in court was that of a “considered, meticulous” killer.

“During the course of our investigation, we have established a picture of the level of fraud, treachery and fraud that has been perpetrated,” he said.

“This is on a monstrous and monumental scale.

“McCullough lied about almost every aspect of his life, maintaining a charade to deceive everyone close to him and clearly taking advantage of his parents’ wishes.

“He was an intelligent and skilled manipulator who chose to kill his parents callously and without a thought for them or those who continue to suffer from their loss.”