Murder trial shown CCTV of figure throwing items over hedge at defendant's home

The trial of a man accused of murdering his pregnant ex-partner has been shown footage of a taxi arriving at his home on the night of the killing, before a figure emerges who throws items over a hedge.

Natalie McNally was 15 weeks pregnant with a baby boy when she died at her home in Lurgan, County Armagh, on 18 December 2022.

Stephen McCullagh, aged 36 from Woodland Gardens in Lisburn, County Antrim, has denied murdering the 32-year-old.

Earlier, a digital forensic analyst said there was "extensive evidence" that a purported gaming live stream conducted by McCullagh, and then presented as an alibi, was pre-recorded days earlier.

CCTV tracks figure to defendant's home

At Thursday's hearing, the fourth day of evidence in the trial, Det Sgt Crawford presented a series of maps and CCTV footage.

Part of the footage tracked a taxi which left Lurgan, where Natalie lived and was found dead, to the defendant's address in Lisburn, County Antrim.

The CCTV also shows Natalie's car leaving McCullagh's address on the afternoon of Sunday 18 December 2022, as well as McCullagh buying alcohol at a nearby off-licence a short time later.

The jury was then shown a series of videos and maps that the prosecution say charts a person of interest's movements on the night of Natalie's death.

This footage tracked a figure moving through the Moss Road and Cloverdale Crescent areas of Lisburn before getting on a bus at Rathmoyne House in Dunmurry.

CCTV footage on the bus shows a figure wearing dark clothing with a face covering, gloves, light-coloured shoes and carrying a green shopping bag.

After getting off the bus in Lurgan, the figure is tracked on a number of cameras travelling down Market Street towards William Street, Lough Road and into Silverwood Green.

After leaving Silverwood Green, it appears that the figure had changed clothes.

That person is then recorded on many of the same cameras walking back into Lurgan and getting in a taxi on Carnegie Street.

CCTV footage in Woodland Gardens, Lisburn, later shows the taxi arriving at the defendant's address.

Describing the footage Det Constable Crawford said: "The male appears to throw two objects over the hedge then he walks in to the front gate of the defendant's home address."

Later that night a figure leaves a blue bin kerbside, emerging again later to open and close the bin.

The prosecution then showed a photograph taken from Stephen McCullagh's social media of him wearing a black hat and wig. The prosecution had previously linked the style of hat and wig with the appearance of the person seen in the Lurgan CCTV footage.

Earlier, Det Con Matthews of the police's cyber crime centre, told the jury there was "extensive evidence" the defendant recorded a purported live stream days before her death.

It is the prosecution's case that McCullagh presented the recording of him playing computer games as a live broadcast on YouTube in order to create an alibi for her murder.

Det Con Matthews said the evidence showed the video was recorded on the evening of 14 December 2022, days before Natalie was found dead.

He said a file had been saved just after midnight on the morning of 15 December.

Det Con Matthews said that there was computer data to show that during this period a camera had been connected to the computer. This camera had only previously been connected on 9 May 2022.

"That was the only other connection that year," the officer told the court.

The officer said that on 18 December software called OBS had been used to play the stream out over YouTube.

He said computer data indicates that this was not live.

He said this is because during a live stream the OBS software would record background activity, such as during breaks or in setting levels.

"But if it was pre-recorded you'd see no activity whatsoever and there was no indication of this activity whatsoever."

He said that at 00:05 on 19 December this file was manually stopped with the file deleted a minute later.

"That would require the user to manually delete it, it's not automated."