Mount Vernon man has been given a $1 million bond for allegedly possessing child pornography

According to law enforcement, a Mount Vernon man was arrested on Thursday, Oct. 10, on probable cause for allegedly having child pornography on his cell phone.

Christopher McCullough, 38, was arraigned Friday, Oct. 11, in Whatcom Superior Court on two counts related to possessing depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct, said Megan Peters, public information officer for the Bellingham Police Department. McCullough’s bail was set at $1 million.

A witness contacted BPD in late September and reported finding at least eight videos of suspected child pornography on McCullough’s cell phone after he allegedly told her, “He likes child pornography” and said he had images and videos of it on his cell phone. ” according to court documents.

According to court documents, the witness took McCullough’s cell phone and gave it to investigators after she filed a police report.

The witness also said McCullough came to her home, threatened her on the phone and said he would have her killed, court documents show.

McCullough, who according to court documents is from Ireland, travels there frequently and some of the files were reportedly marked “United Kingdom.” Apparently the files were also labeled in Spanish.

During the investigation, Bellingham police were able to establish probable cause and an arrest warrant was issued for McCullough on Oct. 3, Peters said.

Investigators learned that McCullough was living at a residence near Big Lake outside Mount Vernon, and on Thursday, 25 BPD officers and Skagit County Sheriff’s Office deputies helped take McCullough into custody, search the apartment and to collect additional evidence, Peters said.

McCullough did not cooperate with 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 have heartbreaking content. “The BPD Detective Division investigated this case professionally and persistently,” said Chief Rebecca Mertzig. “Thank you to the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office and the Big Lake Fire Department. We value the strong, collaborative partnership that allows us to hold offenders accountable and keep our communities safe.”

Anyone who has children who spent time with McCullough or has information about McCullough’s illegal activities is asked to call Det. Allen at 360-778-8784 or report a tip online at www.cob.org/tips.

Annie Todd is a CDN criminal justice and corporate reporter. reach her at [email protected]; 360-922-3090 ext 130.