A YouTuber accused of murdering his pregnant girlfriend told her family at her wake about finding her body, a court has heard.
The parents and two brothers of Natalie McNally gave evidence about what they allege Stephen McCullagh said at her wake on Christmas Day.
Ms McNally, 32, was stabbed at her home in Silverwood Green, Lurgan, on the night of December 18 2022 when she was 15 weeks pregnant.
McCullagh, 36, from Woodland Gardens, Lisburn, denies murder.
Belfast Crown Court heard on Tuesday from Ms McNally’s father Noel and mother Bernadette, and her brothers Declan and Brendan.
They told the court McCullagh said at the wake he went to Ms McNally’s home after becoming concerned when she did not reply to his texts.
Noel McNally said: “I think he started to tell us he was doing the gaming, to (when) he found the body – it was just one long story, I don’t think anyone interrupted him during that time.”
Mr McNally said this was his third time meeting McCullagh.
He said he had been released from police custody and as police had told them McCullagh was “no longer a suspect”, they felt it was “appropriate he come to our house”.
He said McCullagh told the family that when he got no reply from Ms McNally, he thought she was mad at him for drinking or had diabetic hypoglycemia.
Mr McNally said McCullagh said he bought a bottle of Lucozade on the way to her house and when he got there he texted her to say it was ok if she was “mad” at him and asked her to come to the window to let him know she was okay.
The witness told the court McCullagh said when he went into Ms McNally’s house, he saw her Alsatian dog River stand up and he then saw Ms McNally lying at the top of the stairs.
He said he then phoned the emergency services, told them Ms McNally was pregnant and he said he was told to put a cushion under her.
Defence barrister John Kearney KC said the defendant had contended it was not “an accurate recall” to say he had texted Ms McNally when at her house asking her to come to the window.
He said McCullagh said he “never” said that to Mr McNally, but may have said he intended to ask her this.
“Is that possible?” Mr Kearney asked.
Mr McNally replied: “No. He said he texted Natalie to see if she was ok and she didn’t reply.”
Mr Kearney asked if McCullagh had told the family River had come down the stairs in the house, if he had said he rang the bell, and that when he rang the bell he opened the door and the dog ran out.
Mr Kearney also asked if he remembered McCullagh saying he called the dog back in and went back up the stairs and that is when he saw Ms McNally.
Mr McNally said: “That’s not what he told me, no.”
Bernadette McNally was also asked by Mr Kearney if McCullagh said something about the dog “getting out and getting back in”.
She said: “I can’t recall that.”
Mr McNally also said they were told by police McCullagh “wasn’t co-operating with them” and police had asked the family to speak with him.
Mr McNally said McCullagh said he did not want anything to do with the police because of how badly they treated him when he was arrested.
He said McCullagh had said that while at the police station, he was “stripped”, his genitals were swabbed and he was put in a cell for hours.
Mrs McNally later told the court McCullagh had told them he had not been treated “well” by police, and two female police officers had stripped him.
Mr McNally said McCullagh said when he was arrested, he told one of the policemen “I never killed Natalie” and the policeman had “laughed in his face”.
Asked by Mr Kearney about a statement he gave, and how it compares to his recollection of what McCullagh said about his encounter with police, Mr McNally agreed it was a “slightly different version”.
Asked if it was possible if he had instead “challenged the basis of his arrest”, Mr McNally said: “He never said ‘why are you arresting me’, as far as I can recall he said ‘I never killed Natalie’.”
Under further questioning from Mr Kearney, Mr McNally was asked about whether Ms McNally’s pets – River and two cats – had escaped before and whether the back door was “regularly” left open.
Mr McNally said he was not aware of that.
He also said he did not know about contact over the phone between Ms McNally and her ex-boyfriend.
Declan McNally said McCullagh “mentioned several times” that when he was in bed with Ms McNally, her phone rang and she hung up straight away, and he said Ms McNally said her ex was “always harassing” her.
He also told the court McCullagh said at one point a video had come up on his phone about narcissists and narcissism, and that narcissism was about control.
He said McCullagh said he believed that was what happened to Ms McNally, and that he believed her ex-boyfriend had gone to her house, she had said she was pregnant and her ex had got “into a rage and killed her”.
Mr Kearney said the defendant “doesn’t recall this” but also “doesn’t dispute it”.
Brendan McNally said McCullagh had said at the wake that he had texted Ms McNally at 6pm on Sunday that he was about to start his livestream.
He said on Monday he texted her on WhatsApp throughout the day but was getting no response, and said his messages were received but not read, the court heard.
Brendan McNally said McCullagh said he got worried and when he arrived at her house he noticed her bedroom light was on.
He said McCullagh said he texted Ms McNally again to go to the window so that he could check she was okay, and when this did not happen he decided to go into the house.
He also said he mentioned a “list of grievances” McCullagh had with the police: “He said he was strip-searched and had his genitals swabbed by two female officers, he said he was left in a dark room by himself. That’s all I can recall.”
Asked by Mr Kearney if it was possible the defendant indicated he had intended to text Ms McNally, he said he could not recall the exact words used.
Asked by prosecuting barrister Charles MacCreanor KC if McCullagh had said he texted Ms McNally, or if he had considered sending her a text, Mr McNally said to the best of his recollection “he actually did say that he texted Natalie”.
Mr McNally also said McCullagh said at the wake on Christmas Day that he was constantly checking media and the prominence of the story on websites.
He said McCullagh said his “heart sank” when he noticed that it was dropping down the “most interest” sections.
“He said if he was working he would ensure that the story was on top,” Mr McNally said, and recalled him saying this should be an “international story” during an “emotional outburst”.
The evidence heard in the case on Tuesday is being published after the judge lifted a reporting restriction on Wednesday.
The trial continues.
