Natalie McNally

McCullagh was charged at Lisburn Magistrates Court on Thursday with the murder of his girlfriend Natalie McNally. Ms McNally, who was 32 years old and 15 weeks ...

He added: “He didn’t know who that was. Mr McGuinness said in the statement in which McCullagh acknowledged he was not livestreaming on the night of Natalie’s death, he claimed he was instead drinking on his own in his house and fell asleep. “He did further say that he denied involvement in Natalie’s murder.” Mr McGuinness said McCullagh acknowledged “the assailant had taken a taxi to his home address and come in”. The court heard that police also believe they can trace McCullagh from the crime scene back to his home in Lisburn through a combination of CCTV evidence, including on board a bus to Lurgan, and from the account of a taxi driver who police believe drove him on the final part of his journey home after he allegedly committed the crime. “However, since the investigation has begun, whilst in parallel with refusing to assist the investigation, knowing that he was a very significant witness to the crime scene, he has been in constant contact with the McNally family and inquiring into the progress of the police investigation.” The senior PSNI officer said he believed this was McCullagh attempting to determine if the family suspected him of involvement in the death. When asked by police where he was at the time his partner was killed, McCullagh claimed he had been drinking alone in his own home. When this was put to McCullagh during questioning, the court was told he admitted he had faked the livestream. Mr McGuinness said when interviewed in 2019 in relation to the alleged assault, McCullagh had admitted “striking” his partner in the face but claimed there were “justifications” for his actions. When first arrested as part of the police investigation into his partner’s murder on December 19, McCullagh, a well-known YouTuber, said he had been taking part in a six-hour livestreaming event at his Woodland Gardens home in Lisburn at the time of Ms McNally’s death. In relation to the alleged 2019 incident, the PPS solicitor claimed McCullagh had found something on his partner’s phone which “he didn’t like” and later assaulted her. The PPS representative said an allegation of violence against an ex-partner had been made against McCullagh in 2019 and the solicitor claimed there were “some similarities” with the current case against him.