Police Search Home of Missing Woman's Husband

Leyla McCullagh, 36, previously charged with domestic assault against her husband

Police searched the apartment of the husband of a missing Leesburg woman Tuesday.

Leyla Mastova McCullagh, 36, was last seen Aug. 13. Shortly after that, she failed to follow up with the Loudoun County court system, as she was ordered to do so after pleading no contest to a charge of domestic assault against her husband, Matthew McCullagh.

The charge stemmed from an April 10 incident at the couple’s home on Evergreen Mills Road in Leesburg, where Leyla McCullagh allegedly kicked in a bedroom door, kicked in a TV screen, and threw it at her husband before attacking him.

Matthew McCullagh called police around 4 a.m. When they arrived, they noticed cuts on his hands and forearms. Leyla McCullagh told officers she was trying to confront her husband about an alleged affair.

Leyla McCullagh, who had listed her occupation as belly dancer on at least one document, pleaded guilty to domestic assault and was placed on probation. She was ordered to attend counseling after the incident but then went missing.

She was last seen with a family member at her home on Evergreen Mills Road in Leesburg. At the time she appeared to be suffering from an unknown medical condition, said the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office is investigating the possibility of foul play in Leyla McCullagh's disappearance, according to court documents. She had complained that her husband was assaulting her and threatened to get her deported, News4's Pat Collins reported. She had told neighbors she was from Russia.

Matthew McCullagh has since moved to a Herndon apartment, which police searched recently, seizing a number of guns and a substantial amount of ammunition, Collins reported.

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