She lived in the home with her parents' bodies for four years
Matt Lee Senior Multimedia Journalist
15:44, 11 Oct 2024
A daughter who murdered her parents then lived alongside their bodies for four years has been told she will serve at least 36 years in prison. Virginia McCullough, 36, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term after she poisoned her father, John, and then fatally attacked her mum, Lois, 71, at their home in Great Baddow.
She used a cocktail of medication with alcoholic drinks to poison John before she brutally beat her mother with a hammer and repeatedly stabbed her with a kitchen knife in 2019, Chelmsford Crown Court heard. Virginia continued to live at the property in Pump Hill until her arrest in September 2023.
McCullough “built a makeshift tomb” for her father, who had worked as a university lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University, whilst her mum's body was wrapped in a sleeping bag and hidden in her mother's bedroom on the home's top floor. Her actions were uncovered after her parents’ GPs raised concerns over missed appointments.
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McCullough, who wiped away tears when the court was told how she killed her parents, showed no emotion as Mr Justice Johnson sentenced her to more than three decades behind bars, choosing not to impose a whole life order on the killer.
He said Virginia was "trapped by your own dishonest behaviour" and was involved in a "web of deceit that you spun over several years". He added: "Your parents were entitled to feel safe in their own beds, in their own home and from their own daughter. Your conduct was a gross breakdown in the trust between parents and their children."
The investigation began in September 2023, after the couple’s GP raised concerns about Virginia frequently cancelling appointments on behalf of John. Officers visited the couple’s home, became suspicious and located human remains which were confirmed to be that of John and Lois.
It was established the murders had taken place at some stage in the summer of 2019. Post-mortem examinations revealed both had been poisoned with prescription medication. John died as a result of the poisoning while Lois had been struck with a hammer and fatally stabbed.
Initially a missing persons investigation was launched, and officers began their enquiries. McCullough lied to officers when initially contacted, claiming her parents were travelling and would be returning in October.
Due to their suspicions, a murder investigation was launched and police used their powers to enter and search the Pump Hill property. McCullough was the sole occupant and instantly confessed to officers that her parents’ bodies were in the house and that she had killed them.
McCullough murdered parents in cold blood - police
Virginia McCullough's brutal killing of John and Lois was done in cold blood, Detective Inspector Rob Kirby said. He added: "Her actions were considered, meticulous and carried out in such a way as to conceal what she had done for as long as possible.
"These were the actions of someone who had taken time to plan and carry out the murder of her parents in the interest of self-preservation and personal gain, before living within meters of the bodies of her two victims for a number of years.
"Throughout the course of our investigation, we have built a picture of the vast levels of deceit, betrayal and fraud she engaged in. It was on a shocking and monumental scale. 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’ good will."
Mrs Wilding, prosecuting in court said that McCullough “has not been employed for many years”. The prosecutor said the defendant “engaged in online gambling” and spent £21,193 in transactions related to gambling between June 1, 2018, and September 14, 2023.
Ms Wilding said that McCullough “made arrangements to ensure that she continued to enjoy the benefit of the pensions that continued to be paid in their names” after the deaths of her parents. The prosecutor said McCullough “benefited from” £59,664.01 from the state pension and £76,334.58 from Mr McCullough’s Teacher’s Pension between June 18 2019 and September 15 2023.
Ms Wilding said money appeared to have been “frittered away and the investigation has not revealed any expenditure on expensive, luxury or extravagant items”. She had told persistent lies about their whereabouts, frequently telling doctors and relatives her parents were unwell, on holiday or away on lengthy trips.
The prosecution claimed financial gain was a "significant motive" for the couple's killing. In victim statements Virginia was told there was "nothing stopping [her] from getting a job and living her life". They added: "Her prolific lies and greed are such senseless reasons for killing John and Lois."
Nicola Rice a Specialist Prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service added: "McCullough callously and viciously killed both of her parents before concealing their bodies in makeshift tombs within their home address. She spent the next four years manipulating and lying to family members, medical staff, financial institutions, and the police, spending her parent’s money and accruing large debts in their name.
"Working with the police we built a strong prosecution case to show the level of McCullough’s deceit both before and after the killings, which helped deliver a guilty plea, thereby sparing the victims’ loved ones the pain of a trial. This was a truly disturbing case, which has left behind it a trail of devastation, and I can only hope that the sentence passed today will help those who loved and cared for Lois and John begin to heal."