A YouTuber has been convicted of murdering his pregnant girlfriend after using a deceptive GTA "Livestream" to establish a false alibi, a Belfast court heard. Stephen McCullagh, 36, was found guilty of the murder of Natalie McNally, 32, who was 15 weeks pregnant with their baby boy at the time of her death in December 2022.
According to reports from the BBC, the jury of six men and six women deliberated for just over two hours before delivering the unanimous guilty verdict at the end of a trial that lasted more than four weeks. McCullagh, known online as "votesaxon07" with tens of thousands of subscribers, had denied the charge but showed no emotion as the verdict was read out in the dock at Belfast Crown Court on March 23, 2026.
In the course of the proceedings, the jury heard a detailed account of how McCullagh carried out the killing. On December 18, 2022, he appeared to launch a six-hour Grand Theft Auto broadcast that he claimed was happening live. In reality, the stream served as an elaborate deception; McCullagh, who later confessed in a statement to police, had prepared the footage in advance so he could travel in disguise to his then-girlfriend Natalie McNally’s home in Lurgan, where he beat, strangled, and stabbed her, before returning by taxi to his own residence and dialing 999 the following day.
The pre-recorded livestream, featuring gameplay from both Grand Theft Auto and Robot Wars, had actually been created four days earlier. Barrister Charles MacCreanor KC told the court that McCullagh not only misled people with his false claims but also showed up at McNally’s wake, where her family had invited him in to offer and receive emotional support, according to The Independent.
"[McCullagh's] claim that between 6 p.m. and midnight he was going live was a complete fabrication," MacCreanor KC said. "He repeatedly and to different people lied that he was doing a live show."
McCullagh's channel primarily covered science fiction and entertainment subjects, such as Battlebots toys and Star Wars collectibles, yet the trial focused on how he weaponized his online persona to conceal the brutal assault. Prosecutors introduced evidence proving the six-hour video had been uploaded to simulate a real-time session while he was in fact moving between locations in Northern Ireland. Cyber forensics experts confirmed the material was not broadcast live, collapsing his early assertion that he had remained at home in Lisburn throughout the relevant period. The court further examined how McCullagh knew McNally’s phone PIN and gave conflicting accounts to authorities and acquaintances.
The presiding judge, Mr Justice Kinney, spoke directly to the convicted man following the verdict. "A date will be set for the setting of a minimum tariff." Under guidelines from the UK's Sentencing Council, the minimum term to serve before parole eligibility varies according to the offender’s age and the specific details of the case, with adult defendants typically receiving tariffs ranging from 15 to 30 years. At 36 years old, McCullagh will receive a mandatory life sentence, and the exact length of the tariff will be determined at a hearing currently scheduled for May 15, where the court will consider aggravating factors including the planned nature of the attack and the vulnerability of the victim, who was carrying his unborn child.
This case underscores the potential for digital manipulation to intersect with serious violent crime, as investigators peeled back layers of a meticulously built online pretense that initially confused both police and the wider public. McCullagh’s scheme not only claimed the lives of a young woman and her unborn son but also undermined confidence in the content-creation platforms he relied upon. Extensive digital analysis, CCTV records, phone data, and witness statements ultimately exposed the deception, leading to his conviction after a thorough courtroom examination.
