Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Woman Confesses To Murdering Parents In Shocking Video: 'Cheer Up!'

Starting point is 00:00:00 Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this law and crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Police break down the door of a home and once inside, they find a woman who makes a stunning confession. I slipped a pile of booze into his drink. Virginia McCulloch confesses to murdering her parents and hiding their bodies for years. Cheer up, at least you caught the bad guy. I have the footage and what police are saying about it. Welcome to Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy. We see a lot of videos with people confessing to crimes, and sometimes it can take a while for a suspect to come clean to offer up the details of what

Starting point is 00:00:51 they've done. But with Virginia McCulloch in the United Kingdom, it didn't take any time at all for her to spill the beans and tell on herself that she murdered her mother and father, Lois and John. This video that you're going to see is from September of 2023. Police in Essex broke down the door at the home where Virginia's parents had once lived. The case is truly shocking, not only because Virginia murdered her parents in a cold and calculated fashion, but because she hid the bodies of her parents, John and Lois, in their home for more than four years. Police believe that Virginia killed her parents in the summer of 2019. So let's start at the very beginning.

Starting point is 00:01:31 Essex police raided the home where Virginia McCulloch was living with her parents' remains back in September of 2023. Take a look. so right there virginia Virginia McCulloch, she doesn't resist, not one bit. She knows the jig is up. The time is 12-12. You're under arrest for suspicion of murder against Jonathan McCulloch and Lars McCulloch. Okay? You don't have to say anything, but in my home defense, you don't have to mention, or question, so I just don't want anything to do with this.

Starting point is 00:02:37 Okay? All right? Your arrest is suspicion of the murder of her parents. She says she will cooperate and she wants to show the police something. And they say, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You're not showing us anything. You can tell us. And this is a woman, keep in mind, who has lied and lied and lied for years. And the home is a crime scene. Virginia tells them basically where they can find the remains of her parents and how she killed her father. Can you go in there for a second, just so I can tell you something about what's in there? Yeah, yeah. The only reason I said I need to tell you something is about what's upstairs on the top floor as well. It's fine, won't it?

Starting point is 00:03:11 Yeah, okay. It's a bit more quiet, huh? Yep. Is it here? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, just mind your feet. It's obviously... I'm sorry, I'm not that tall.

Starting point is 00:03:19 No, it's fine. I know, but obviously I've got a chair. Oh, my dad's body's in there. Right, okay. Yep, okay. Obviously I'll say... Where about your mum? A little bit more complicated. Okay.

Starting point is 00:03:36 That's why I said, can I go upstairs? Virginia then goes on to explain how she poisoned her father. She goes into great detail and she tells the officers where they can find her dad's remains can you explain it to us please because we're trying to preserve this it's now going to be seen so we need to preserve this the best we can so i don't want you have you walking up there all right because it's that that's for your well-being as well as ours oh no okay so where will we find your mom where will we find your mom? Where will we find your mum? Okay, so upstairs there were about five wardrobes. Yep.

Starting point is 00:04:07 It's behind the bed, at the back, next to the sink. That's the second one. I slipped a pile of those into his drink. There were about two or three drinks that I bought downstairs. Yeah, they were basically... He didn't drink all of them. He only drank probably about half of two. But yeah, when I went in in the morning, this was before my mother, when I went in the morning, early hours, I got up about half an hour early,

Starting point is 00:04:41 about six o'clock in the morning, came in and he was gone he was gone it's up to you if you want to talk yeah the thing is purpose of your arrest um purpose of your rest is for a prompt effective investigation as well by questioning you we can't do that here it needs to be done at a police station, all right? I did know that this would kind of come eventually, and it's proper that I serve my punishment. So, yeah. So you heard Virginia say she knew it would come to this. She also detailed how she murdered her mother by poisoning her as well.

Starting point is 00:05:27 Autopsies revealed that Lois and John McCulloch had been poisoned, as Virginia had claimed. Essex police say Lois had also been hit with a hammer and stabbed. Police then repeat what Virginia told them. OK, right. So I've written this please. I, Virginia McCulloch, have informed Police Constables 77329 Brown and 79387 Bowers after entering my house on Friday the 15th September 2023 that I murdered my father, John McCulloch, who was stated was under a bed in the rear ground floor of the house and my mother upstairs in a cupboard next to the sink.

Starting point is 00:06:04 Wardrobe. It's a double wardrobe right ok I've written cupboard it's like four wardrobes but it's the one next to the sink, double wardrobe pick up then yeah yeah what significance is all written down there here now I've just read out to you are you happy to sign that to say that's a true account yeah cheer up at least you caught the bad guy so you heard virginia say cheer up at least you got the

Starting point is 00:06:35 bad guy this footage is incredible it's actually unbelievable virginia then tries to talk with the officers again and i don't know a lot of evil, but we all. I'm not going to comment on anything. It's not my job to comment on it. OK, because I've got to be impartial with everything. OK, so I'm not going to give any comments. No, well, I mean, I deserve to obviously get whatever's coming sentence wise, because that's the right thing to do. And that might give me a bit of peace.

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Starting point is 00:07:45 That's promo code CrimeFix for extra cash back. So after killing her parents and living with their remains for more than four years, Virginia says being punished may actually give her some peace. She then tells police where they can find other pieces of evidence. Also in the handbag as well, there's, and again, because you're probably going to need to know about it, there's a card in there, card one money. And that's a thank card where there's a lot of transactions that have taken place over the last few years from money that comes to my parents. The conversation continues at the police station when Virginia is in a holding cell.

Starting point is 00:08:33 And some of this is difficult to make out. But she tells the police where they can find a kitchen knife and a hammer. So, a murder weapon is upstairsr ymddygiad. Mae o yng nghanol y bwyd a'r llawr yn y cyd. Yn y cyd â'r llawr, felly mae dwy llawr bwyd yn y cyd. Felly yn y cyd â'r llawr, yna yw'r llawr. Felly, y peth nesaf sy'n anodd i'w siarad amdano, where that wall is, that's where the knife is. So next bit is very hard to talk about, that's probably the most grisly detail. So on the ground floor, underneath the stairs, there's a few storage boxes and things.

Starting point is 00:09:21 And in the middle, I think it's in one of the boxes or in a bag or something, if you want me to shush after this it's fine, but every bit helps. You will find for instance it's helpful, there's a hammer. I know, I know, I know, but I'm trying to help so you find everything. It's in the middle underneath the stairs. It will still have blood on it. It's rusted, but it will still have blood traces on it. So not cooperating is futile. There's no point in not cooperating. There really isn't. And last, I can't point to any way I should call it a murder. That's the only point I think. So, yeah. Now, you might be wondering, how on earth could someone hide the bodies of their parents for so long?

Starting point is 00:10:17 Well, first, police say the COVID-19 pandemic may have bought Virginia some time. They also say she's a skilled liar. Police say Virginia told a number of lies about where her parents were and canceled family arrangements and appointments telling doctors and relatives that her parents weren't well or that they were on vacation or away on long trips. The head of Essex police issued a statement saying this case has taken a toll on John and Lois's extended family. Detective Superintendent Rob Kirby said in part, Virginia McCulloch murdered her parents in cold blood.

Starting point is 00:10:55 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. McCulloch 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 kill her parents callously without a thought for them or those who continue to suffer as a result of their loss. Kirby said the case had shocked and horrified even the most experienced homicide detectives.

Starting point is 00:11:36 John and Lois' family also issued a statement thanking Essex police and talking about their parents. Our dad was caring and hardworking, and he had a passion for education and writing. He worked tirelessly in his career and university education, which spanned many years. Dad enjoyed lots of hobbies, with particular favorites being golf and snooker. As we think of dad, we remember the numerous jokes he used to tell us and the laughs he gave us.

Starting point is 00:12:02 Our mom was kind, caring, and thoughtful. Mom delighted in her grandchildren. Our family has been left devastated and heartbroken at the deaths of our parents who were taken from us so cruelly. Our mom and dad are forever in our hearts and are loved and missed beyond any measure. Virginia McCulloch will likely spend the rest of her life in prison. She won't be eligible for parole until serving 36 years. Phil Waters is a veteran homicide detective, and he has interrogated hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands of people over the years. So, Phil, I'm wondering, what are your thoughts on this woman, Virginia McCulloch? The cops show up and she basically just tells them everything.

Starting point is 00:12:44 Well, good to be with you again, Anjanette. I will tell you, it was a very interesting first meeting there with the officers. And it was a, my impression of her was just a look of resignation. She says later on in the interview that she knew this day was coming, so she was resigned to what was going to happen. And it was almost a sense of relief. People like this to do things as crazy as this is and live with it for these years and years and years, knowing what they've done and continuing over and over again to hide what they have done and to lie to people about where her parents are, where they have been and so forth and so on. So I wasn't terribly surprised about her attitude, given

Starting point is 00:13:38 what she knew was, was it the offing, what she knew was going to eventually happen? Phil, one of the things that I find so disturbing about this, I mean, obviously she knew she was caught. It was over. She had been kind of living this lie for years. But she just kind of plainly tells them everything that happened. But just the fact of how calculated this was, the fact that she she killed her parents, poisoned them. The mom was apparently hit with a hammer and stabbed. In addition to that, according to what the autopsy found. And she's doing this, hides the bodies in the house to live off of their pension funds or whatever money they had coming in, runs up their credit cards.

Starting point is 00:14:24 I mean, it's unbelievable to me that the fact that she did this to her parents and this is the reason why and that they believe that they were killed in 2019 and that she was able to carry this on for so long. Well, it doesn't surprise me. I mean, I've seen. But why is that? Well, because I've seen these this kind of mindset before. So she's a sociopath. She she justified in her own mind that what she was what she did to her parents was was was justified.

Starting point is 00:14:57 She had needs. The parents have the means by which to satisfy those needs. And that was the way she was going to resolve the issue. So what we don't know is the relationship between her and her parents. And that would be my interest in an interview with somebody like her would be that, you know, you've got the how, the when, the where. You've got all those questions answered, but you don't have the why. Now, she goes on in that video, that interview, kind of explaining it, but I would want to set her down, find out how she was raised,

Starting point is 00:15:42 what was her relationship with her parents, her siblings, and so forth and so on. So there's a lot going on there. And she, what I noticed throughout these clips, was that everything was about her. She didn't show any remorse about what she had done. In fact, she took the officers. The hammer was still in the house. The knife she used on her mom and the hammer were still in the house she took them there she took them to where the bodies were she explained where she put them why she put them there and then look these bodies are decomposing over this period of

Starting point is 00:16:19 time so don't know what she did to get the the smell down and that kind of a thing i'm surprised somebody hadn't called that heard that smelled this kind of aroma coming out from this area somewhere but everything was about her in fact uh she even said at one point that she intimated that she was glad this had finally happened in that she's being confronted by police because it's going to clear her conscience. So it was all about her. It's all about her. And it just goes to what I've always believed is that anyone, anyone, you, me,

Starting point is 00:17:02 anyone is capable of any of any act under the right set of circumstances. And so for her, the set of circumstances came together four years ago and she did what she did, felt justified in doing it. Now she's caught, Hey, I may as well go ahead and lay it out because it's not going to get any better from here. Yeah, it's absolutely stunning. And we don't really know a whole lot about her relationship with her parents, but it doesn't really matter because what she did is just so beyond the pale. But, you know, it's so rare that we actually see somebody just right there. I mean, the cops are right there. And they even told her, you don't have to talk to us. And she just did it. And she put it all out there talking about how she poisoned her dad. And now she's going to prison for a very, very long time. You know, this is probably somebody, if you sat down in an interview room with them, I mean, it's probably somebody you could learn a lot from just in seeing how they portray themselves and how you would be able to

Starting point is 00:18:05 deal with them, I guess. Well, sure. And you've already got a suspect you're speaking with that's already compliant. She made this decision early on because she knew the day was coming. And so she was prepared for this. That's why you don't see, I didn't see any looks of surprise or shock or anything else or any denials for that matter. So most people in this kind of a situation, they're going to say, oh, I don't know what you're talking about, blah, blah, blah. And there had been an officer there a year before on a welfare check for the parents. And the officer didn't find anything suspicious. This gal is so in character for what she knows she's done and being able to explain her parents being gone because she's done this over a course of years.

Starting point is 00:18:58 She's got the story down and the story and just watching her and her delivery. She's believable. So there's no reason to believe that the officer did something that was outside of the process of checking on a person, checking their welfare or violating any policy of any kind. And so finally, the day came where you're going to have to face up to what you did. And she was resigned to it and was fully compliant and cooperative about the results. Phil Waters, thank you so much. You bet.

Starting point is 00:19:37 Thanks for having me, Anjanette. Take care. And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy. Thanks so much for being with me. I'll see you back here next time.

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Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Woman Confesses To Murdering Parents In Shocking Video: 'Cheer Up!'

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Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Woman Confesses To Murdering Parents In Shocking Video: 'Cheer Up!'

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