The YouTube account which Stephen McCullagh used to create a “fake alibi” for the murder of his pregnant partner Natalie McNally has been removed.
On Monday, McCullagh (36), from Woodland Gardens in Lisburn, Co Antrim, was convicted of McNally’s murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.
McCullagh’s channels remained available on YouTube’s website throughout the duration of his trial, including the six-hour “Violent Night Christmas Live Gaming Stream” which he maintained he was broadcasting live.
That video had been streamed by more than 750,000 people before its removal.
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It is understood the account was removed from the YouTube partner programme after McCullagh’s arrest in February, which meant he was no longer earning money from it, though it was still available to view until his conviction.
A spokeswoman for YouTube confirmed on Tuesday that McCullagh’s channels had been “terminated ... for violating our creator responsibility policies”.
Police initially believed McCullagh had been broadcasting the game at the time of McNally’s murder, until cyber experts discovered more than a month later that it had been pre-recorded, and McCullagh was rearrested.
Extracts from the six-hour Violent Night Christmas Live Gaming Stream were played to the jury during McCullagh’s trial.
It showed him drinking and wearing a Santa hat as he played Grand Theft Auto, announcing “I’m not leaving the house tonight”, and making repeated references to the date, time and that he was “live”.
Watching from the dock at Belfast Crown Court, McCullagh laughed as his own jokes and expletive-ridden commentary about how he was a “very angry gamer”.
Northern Ireland’s Minister for Justice, Naomi Long, told the BBC on Tuesday she did not believe “anyone should profit from criminal activity of any kind” but the control and regulation of online spaces was “not something that lies within my purview” and was the responsibility of the Westminster government.
McNally was remembered in the Assembly chamber at Stormont on Tuesday, and tributes paid to her parents Bernie and Noel McNally.
The Alliance Party Assembly member, Eoin Tennyson, said the McNallys had “carried themselves with immeasurable strength, dignity, courage and grace in the face of the most unimaginable horror and loss.
“We have all been moved by the stories ... about the happy memories they shared with Natalie, her sense of humour, her belief in equality, her love of sport, and it was very clear that she had a positive impact on so many people during her short, brilliant life.
“Whilst justice was served yesterday [Monday], it will not bring Natalie back, though I hope it will furnish the family with some comfort and some closure.”
He urged MLAs to reflect on violence against women and girls and to commit “to build a society that is kinder, that is more compassionate, that is inclusive, where men treat women with the dignity and respect that they deserve.” – Additional reporting: PA
