Who is Christopher McCullough? Man who brutally thrashed his parents faces murder charge after mom dies
RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA: A man who was accused of brutally beating his parents unconscious, is now slapped with a murder charge by the authorities in Raleigh, North Carolina, following his mother's death on Monday, August 21, states a press release.
29-year-old Christopher McCullough was already facing two counts of assault with serious body injury. On August 6, just before 3 am Raleigh police were called to a home for an assault and found Mary McCullough, 75, and John McCullough, 69, with severe injuries. They were transported to a nearby medical facility where Mary McCullough later succumbed to her injuries.
Christopher McCullough stole a vehicle after the brutal assault
According to an arrest warrant filed in court, Christopher thrashed his mother inflicting “serious bodily injury beating with hands about the head and face causing unconsciousness and serious head injury.” Court documents also said that his father was found unconscious. Their son stole their car after the beatings, records state.
The assault took place in front of the accused's child
NBC affiliate WRAL reported that prosecutors said in court that the assaults took place in front of Christopher McCullough’s child, whom he took without consent for he is only allowed supervised visits. He was initially arrested on August 6 in connection with the beatings.
Christopher McCullough reportedly smiled and questioned the charges during his bond hearing for those charges. “This is an allegation, so an assumption,” he told the judge, according to WRAL. Court records say that he is also facing a second degree kidnapping charge for taking the child, along with a larceny of a dog charge after he stole the family’s gray pit bull.
“Any murder certainly is horrific but when it involves people in the same family, those are tragic situations,” Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman told WRAL.
Christopher has a long criminal past
According to the North Carolina Department of Corrections, Christopher McCullough had previous convictions of assault by strangulation in 2014, driving while intoxicated in 2020, and possession of stolen goods in 2021 among others. His parents reportedly took out a protective order in October last year which he’s now accused of violating.
Freeman told the outlet that there was a “long history of domestic violence and domestic turmoil.” “We look forward to bringing justice to this victim and her family,” he said. The outlet also reported that John McCullough is presently in hospital. Christopher is in jail without bond.