Within eight weeks of meeting a widowed former beauty queen on holiday in Portugal, a wealthy insurance agent made her his wife. But Mrs. Muriel McCullough, as she was now, wanted even more out of life. And that entailed the death of her husband.
She was a successful 53-year-old entrepreneur in the fashion world, and in November 1981 she left the couples luxurious home in Cambridgeshire to go to Liverpool on business. As she departed, she kissed her 48-year-old husband Bill goodbye…having arranged to have him killed.
She stood to gain more than £100,000 from his life insurance, and had hired 34-year-old James Collingwood for £8,000 to eliminate him. On NOVEMBER 17th Mr. McCullough was shot twice in the head as he slept at his home, but things then began to go wrong for his widow.
It looked like a contract killing. The victims insurance made Muriel McCullough an obvious suspect, and when detectives inquiries led them also to Collingwood, both were arrested.
On December 17th, 1982, Collingwood was jailed for life for the murder after he changed his plea to guilty.
A life sentence was also collected by Muriel McCullough, for hiring the hit-man.