She had spent years pretending her parents were alive, sending text messages and birthday cards, while spending nearly £150,000 of their savings.
CHELMSFORD — Virginia McCullough, the aspiring artist convicted of murdering her parents and hiding their corpses inside the family home for four years, has described her crimes in chilling letters from prison.
McCullough, 37, was sentenced to life in prison in October 2024 after admitting to killing John and Lois McCullough in 2019. Their bodies were found concealed inside their Chelmsford home in 2023 — John entombed in the study; Lois in an upstairs wardrobe.
In correspondence with producers of Confessions of a Parent Killer, McCullough wrote, “I knew I would be arrested one day and should be… I was relieved the deception was over.”
She had spent years pretending her parents were alive, sending text messages and birthday cards, while spending nearly £150,000 of their savings.
Essex Police bodycam footage captured her arrest. When asked if officers should be aware of anything in the house, she replied, “Yes, there is… Shall I take you to it?”
Her sister, Louise Hopkins, described their childhood as troubled, blaming untreated mental illness and alcoholism. Louise added, “I forgive her but I feel nothing for her.”
Detectives called McCullough a manipulator who committed betrayal on a “monumental” scale. In her letters, McCullough expressed remorse, writing, “Even life without parole is not enough punishment.”
The case, one of Britain’s most disturbing in recent memory, is the focus of a new podcast series by The Daily Mail.