A Mount Vernon man was arrested Thursday, Oct. 10, on probable cause of allegedly having child pornography on his cell phone, according to law enforcement.
Christopher McCullough, 38, was arraigned Friday, Oct. 11 in Whatcom Superior Court on two charges related to possession of depiction of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, said Megan Peters, the public information officer at the Bellingham Police Department. McCullough’s bond was set at $1 million.
A witness contacted BPD in late September to report she had found at least eight videos of suspected child pornography on McCullough’s cell phone after he allegedly told her, “he likes ‘child porn’ and said he has pictures and videos of it on his phone,” according to court documents.
The witness took McCullough’s cell phone and gave it to detectives after she made a police report, according to court documents.
The witness also stated that McCullough had come to her residence and threatened her about the phone and said that he would have her killed, according to court documents.
McCullough, who is from Ireland, according to court documents, frequently travels there and some of the files were allegedly labeled “UK.” Files were also allegedly labeled in Spanish.
During the investigation, Bellingham police were able to establish probable cause and a warrant was issued for McCullough’s arrest on Oct. 3, Peters said.
Detectives learned McCullough was living at a residence near Big Lake outside of Mount Vernon and on Thursday, 25 BPD officers and Skagit County Sheriff’s Office deputies helped to take McCullough into custody, search the residence and collect additional evidence, Peters said.
McCullough did not cooperate during the arrest and attempted to hide and destroy evidence before he was taken into custody, Peters said.
“Cases involving child victims are difficult to investigate and often involves heartbreaking content. BPD’s Detective Division investigated this case professionally and tenaciously,” Chief Rebecca Mertzig said. “Thank you to the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office and the Big Lake Fire Department, we appreciate having a strong, collaborative partnership that allows us to hold offenders accountable and protect our communities.”
Anyone who has children who spent time with McCullough or has information regarding McCullough’s illegal activities are encouraged to call Det. Allen at 360-778-8784 or to report a tip online at www.cob.org/tips.
Annie Todd is CDN’s criminal justice/enterprise reporter; reach her at annietodd@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 130.
