Featured Image Credit: WGXA/Macon Police Department
Topics: Crime, True Crime, US News
Emily Puckering
Topics: Crime, True Crime, US News
The moment a murderer realised the body of his victim had been found by police was captured during a shocking live TV interview with a local news station.
Stephen McDaniel made headlines all across the world back in 2011 after he was found guilty of murdering his neighbour, Lauren Giddings.
At the the time when Giddings, 27, had been reported as missing, McDaniel agreed to talk to local news reporters on live TV about how kind of a person she was.
But little did he realise what was about to come.
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The truth was that McDaniel had been secretly stalking Giddings for months and although he had asked her out for a date, she declined but asked to stay in touch, telling her real friends that he made her feel 'uneasy'.
He would secretly film outside of her bedroom and even broke into her apartment when she wasn't at home.
On 26 June, 2011, McDaniel snuck into her house once more, this time while she was sleeping.
When she woke up, he murdered her by strangulation, dismembering her body and then disposing of her in a bin.
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After committing the monstrous crime, McDaniel went about his life as normal - but after Giddings was reported as missing, instead of staying quiet he decided to offer to help conduct the search.
As part of his 'concerned friend' act, he did an interview with WGXA in which he described how he attended the same university as Giddings, Mercer College in Georgia.
At one point, he even suggested that she may have been snatched while out running.
But his calm and collected temperament clearly shifted when the reporter interviewing him asked him about a torso that had just been discovered - marking the exact moment McDaniel realised the police would soon be on to him.
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The killer appeared to be lost for words, saying: "I think I need to sit down," before breaking down in tears and saying: "I don't know anyone that would want to hurt her."
At this point, police had already established McDaniel as a person of interest, and this was likely only exacerbated by his strange behaviour on camera.
Just a week on from the murder, he was called in for questioning and police searched his home where they found a collection of swords, guns, toilet rolls and a mask made out of women's underwear.
They also discovered packaging for the hacksaw that had been used to dismember Giddings' body along with the master key to the rooms in the building.
His interrogation was even stranger than his news appearance, as he chose to stay bizarrely fixed in one position throughout the 12-hour interview. Take a look:
As you can see in the video above, he was fairly silent and offered monosyllabic answers to the questions.
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In 2014, McDaniel finally confessed to the brutal murder and he was sentenced to life in prison and won't be eligible for parole until 2041.
Stephen appealed his conviction in 2017 but was rejected and is currently serving his sentence at Hancock State prison.