YouTuber Accused of Murdering Pregnant Girlfriend Put on Elaborate 'Act' to Cover Tracks
Prosecutors have alleged that a YouTuber accused of stabbing his pregnant girlfriend to death engaged in a calculated "act" to conceal his involvement, including faking a six-hour video game livestream and making a tearful emergency call. Stephen McCullagh, 36, from Woodland Gardens in Lisburn, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Natalie McNally, 32, who was 15 weeks pregnant when she was killed in her Lurgan home a week before Christmas in 2022.
Prosecution Outlines 'Planned and Premeditated' Murder
As the trial commenced at Belfast Crown Court, prosecuting barrister Charles MacCreanor KC described the killing as "planned, calculated and premeditated, one which he (McCullagh) hoped to get away with." The court heard that McCullagh, known online as Votesaxon07, allegedly concocted a cover story involving a fake livestream on the evening of December 18, 2022, while prosecutors argue he actually traveled to Ms. McNally's home and murdered her.
Ms. McNally's cause of death involved compression of her neck, "suggestive of finger tips grasping," along with three stab wounds to her neck from a bladed weapon and five lacerations to her head from heavy blows. Mr. MacCreanor stated that any of these injuries could have been fatal alone. Her time of death was estimated between 8:50 PM and 9:30 PM that Sunday.
Alleged Cover-Up Included Fake Livestream and Distressed 999 Call
The prosecution presented evidence suggesting McCullagh pre-recorded six hours of himself playing video games, broadcasting it as live that evening. CCTV footage showed a man with a "mop of black hair" under a beanie hat, mostly covering his face, boarding a bus in Dunmurray and alighting in Lurgan, walking toward Ms. McNally's house. Prosecutors claim this man was McCullagh, who may have changed clothes and taken a taxi back to Lisburn.
Police examination of McCullagh's devices revealed searches for bus times to Lurgan, and his phone was unlocked minutes after the taxi departed. Mr. MacCreanor suggested the hair in the footage resembled a wig McCullagh had worn in an Instagram post. During police interviews, McCullagh denied involvement, stating, "It seems that the suspect did take a taxi to my house... I think it is obvious that the true killer of Natalie has left a clear circumstantial trail to link me to the murder."
Emergency Services Describe Scene and McCullagh's Behavior
A distressed-sounding 999 call from McCullagh on December 19 was played in court, where he claimed to have last seen Ms. McNally on Sunday afternoon. Mr. MacCreanor argued this call was "false, it's an act, it's put on by him, part of his plan to do the murder and get away with it." Paramedics and police arrived to find Ms. McNally dead at the top of the stairs, with significant blood and visible injuries.
Paramedic Graham Thompson, the first witness, described seeing a pale female with purple/blue hands and lips, having lost a lot of blood, and a "visibly upset" man performing CPR. He instructed him to stop as resuscitation was hopeless. Constable Archibald noted a "strong foul smell" upon arrival and took a "visibly distraught and crying" McCullagh to a police car, where he repeatedly asked, "Why my Natalie?" She found this odd as the death was not yet confirmed as suspicious.
Constable Feeley, another first responder, observed a knife near the body and blood on the walls and into the living room, describing McCullagh as "distraught, overcome with grief, crying and nearly falling about the place." The trial continues as more evidence is presented.
