Bellingham Police investigation leads to child porn arrest outside of Mount Vernon

A child porn investigation led to the arrest of a man in the Mount Vernon area last week.

Approximately 25 Bellingham Police officers and Skagit County sheriff’s deputies converged on a property near Big Lake outside of Mount Vernon on Thursday to arrest Christopher D. McCullough and conduct a search of the property, according to an email from Megan Peters of the Bellingham Police Department.

BPD received a report in late September from someone who claiming to have discovered “disturbing videos and images depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct on Mr. McCullough’s phone,” according to Peters. The witness took the phone and turned it into the police.

BPD detectives associated with the Washington Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force were granted a search warrant for the phone.

Investigators discovered that McCullough traveled internationally, including trips to Mexico and Ireland within the last year. Some files found on his phone were titled in Spanish. Other files were labeled “UK,” according to Peters.

Whatcom County Superior Court issued a felony arrest warrant for McCullough on Oct. 3.

McCullough was uncooperative with officers during his arrest and attempted to hide and destroy evidence before he could be taken into custody, Peters said.

“Cases involving child victims are difficult to investigate and often involve heartbreaking content. BPD’s Detective Division investigated this case professionally and tenaciously,” BPD Chief Rebecca Mertzig said in the statement. “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 with children who spent time with McCullough or has information regarding his illegal activities is encouraged to call Det. Allen at 360-778-8784 or to report a tip online at www.cob.org/tips.

McCullough was arraigned Friday in Whatcom County Superior Court on charges of possession of depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, first- and second-degree. His bail was set at $1,000,000.

This story was originally published October 12, 2024 at 10:51 AM.