GUILTY SC - Christine Parcell 41, fatally stabbed by concert pianist, Greenville, 13 Oct 2021 *Arrest*

[Mandi3020]

I just started watching the trial today. I’m slack-jawed at Hughes testimony.

 

[arielilane]

@IndyJenn_


John Mello has been booked in the Greenville County Detention Center. His booking photo is not yet available. Stay tuned to @fitsnews for updates.



5:42 PM · Feb 19, 2025

 

[arielilane]

GREENVILLE, S.C. (Court TV) — Zachary Hughes’ shocking testimony from the stand led investigators to charge John Mello in connection with Christina Parcell’s murder.

Parcell was found stabbed more than 30 times in her home in 2021 and was in the middle of a contentious custody battle with Mello at the time over their shared minor daughter. Hughes, a close friend of Mello’s, was charged with her brutal murder.

Zachary Hughes' testimony leads to John Mello's arrest for Parcell's murder

2/19/2025

Less than three hours after Hughes’ testimony, the Greenville Sheriff’s Office announced it had obtained warrants charging Mello with accessory before the fact to a felony and solicitation to commit a felony, based on “open court testimony” during Hughes’ trial. Mello was previously charged along with Hughes for distributing pornographic photos of Parcell.



Judge Orders Zachary Hughes to Stop Talking

Judge Orders Zachary Hughes To Stop Talking​

Zachary Hughes said he struck Parcell with a pistol and saw roses, petals and stems scatter before he struck her with a knife over and over. The judge cut Hughes off when he told the jury that the State was hiding proof from them. (2/19/25) MORE

 

[arielilane]

@fitsnews


Watch Zach Hughes' testimony that led to John Mello's recent arrest.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1892307104079155647

 

[Cedars]

DBM

 

[Skigirl]

I can't see why anyone would be shocked that Mello offered Hughes money to kill Christine, and it is so gross that Hughes said "no" to the smaller amount of money, but then, when the offer was increased, agreed... yet he wants jurors to believe that his motive was the safety of the child. I hope the jury convicts and the judge gives him a very long sentence. JMO.

 

[arielilane]

@IndyJenn_


John Mello's booking photo has been posted to the Greenville County Detention Center site.
@fitsnews


6:09 PM · Feb 19, 2025

 

[Cedars]

I can't see why anyone would be shocked that Mello offered Hughes money to kill Christine, and it is so gross that Hughes said "no" to the smaller amount of money, but then, when the offer was increased, agreed... yet he wants jurors to believe that his motive was the safety of the child. I hope the jury convicts and the judge gives him a very long sentence. JMO.

A pathetic amount, btw. The Adelson's paid over something like $140k for 3 people to get rid of the ex, and that was before inflation. Shanna Gardner is accused of promising $150k to just one guy (who was smart enough to cooperate with police in exchange for reduced charges). I guess pianists are accustomed to working for peanuts.

JMO

 

[arielilane]

I watch many trials, and dont recall ever seeing someone get arrested so quickly based on testimony by a defendant. What a day. moo

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“I knew from that moment on that [redacted child’s name] would be safe, would be safe from the sexual abuse that her mother was perpetrating on her, and there is proof that the state is hiding from you,” Hughes said.

Solicitor Wilkins pleaded with the judge that Hughes had “waived his right to continue testifying” stating that Hughes had “no intent to follow the rules” and is ‘trying to disrupt the criminal justice system.”

https://www.wspa.com/news/local-news/judge-sentences-upstate-murder-suspect-to-6-months-for-outbursts/

 

[Luna20]

I can't see why anyone would be shocked that Mello offered Hughes money to kill Christine, and it is so gross that Hughes said "no" to the smaller amount of money, but then, when the offer was increased, agreed... yet he wants jurors to believe that his motive was the safety of the child. I hope the jury convicts and the judge gives him a very long sentence. JMO.

Yes and that he would only do it if it was necessary! So ‘he’ defined it as ‘necessary’. Wow, he obviously thinks that he has superior intellect to make that claim.

 

[carolmaria]

I can't see why anyone would be shocked that Mello offered Hughes money to kill Christine, and it is so gross that Hughes said "no" to the smaller amount of money, but then, when the offer was increased, agreed... yet he wants jurors to believe that his motive was the safety of the child. I hope the jury convicts and the judge gives him a very long sentence. JMO.

Same, I don’t buy it. Manipulation on Mello’s part plus Hughes’ obsessional tendencies played a role in their folie à deaux, IMO. Bro match made in hell. The attempt to portray high-mindedness… nah.

I was “struck” at how Hughes repeatedly used the word “struck” instead of “stabbed.” Horrifying testimony (on many levels). Am a classical musician who’s familiar with Hughes’ style of precise elocution; really disturbing, all of it.

 

[Trinitee]

Many people are not going to agree with this post but I am going to say it anyway. As the parent of a child who was sexually abused by an older half sibling I get where Zachary Hughes and Mello were coming from.

My daughter’s half sibling admitted to what he had done and that was the ONLY reason I was able to obtain appropriate treatment for him. There was physical evidence that the abuse had indeed occurred but absolutely nothing would have been done had he not admitted to doing it. I cannot even begin to imagine what my reaction would have been if my daughter’s father and his partner had been the perpetrators of the abuse and I was in the same country as them, let alone half way around the world.

This is a link to the civil lawsuit filed against Bradley Post and the Estate of Christina Larain Parcell.

https://www.fitsnews.com/wp-content...and-on-behalf-of-jane-doe-civil-complaint.pdf

I would never make a “Gentleman’s Agreement” to give away the custody of my child to their other parent or anyone else. No one believed this child, or any other children, were being abused by this couple. The abuse was finally substantiated during the investigation that occurred as a result of Christina’s Parcell’s murder. This child would have continued to suffer at the hands of her mother and Bradley Post for god knows how long if this murder had not occurred.

I am not saying I condone vigilante justice but in this case I think it may have saved a child from many years of additional abuse and exploitation.

 

[Skigirl]

Many people are not going to agree with this post but I am going to say it anyway. As the parent of a child who was sexually abused by an older half sibling I get where Zachary Hughes and Mello were coming from.

My daughter’s half sibling admitted to what he had done and that was the ONLY reason I was able to obtain appropriate treatment for him. There was physical evidence that the abuse had indeed occurred but absolutely nothing would have been done had he not admitted to doing it. I cannot even begin to imagine what my reaction would have been if my daughter’s father and his partner had been the perpetrators of the abuse and I was in the same country as them, let alone half way around the world.

This is a link to the civil lawsuit filed against Bradley Post and the Estate of Christina Larain Parcell.

https://www.fitsnews.com/wp-content...and-on-behalf-of-jane-doe-civil-complaint.pdf

I would never make a “Gentleman’s Agreement” to give away the custody of my child to their other parent or anyone else. No one believed this child, or any other children, were being abused by this couple. The abuse was finally substantiated during the investigation that occurred as a result of Christina’s Parcell’s murder. This child would have continued to suffer at the hands of her mother and Bradley Post for god knows how long if this murder had not occurred.

I am not saying I condone vigilante justice but in this case I think it may have saved a child from many years of additional abuse and exploitation.

I think the alleged abuse by her mother is a fabrication and that it is just (horrible) coincidence that Christine had very bad taste in men. JMO.

 

[StarryStarryNight]

I watched this report on Fox Carolina tonight.
These things were mentioned by their reporter who attended the bond hearing or shown in video clips, but are not in the written report.
—that Christina Parcell’s sister brought an urn containing CP’s ashes to the hearing tonight.
—she was aloud to speak and shouted at Mello the he had destroyed his own family and he had destroyed his own daughter’s family.
—she promised Mello that she would be at every day of trial for him and every hearing possible. Also that after he was convicted she would be at every parole hearing, that she was not going anywhere and he would not be able to get rid of her as easily as he got rid of her sister.

No bond for second arrest in connection to Canebrake murder

The Greenville County Sheriff’s Office said another man has been arrested in connection to the murder of Christina Parcell.

www.foxcarolina.com

 

[StarryStarryNight]

I think the alleged abuse by her mother is a fabrication and that it is just (horrible) coincidence that Christine had very bad taste in men. JMO.

I kinda agree.
We will find out at Post’s trial I think. As of now there is no evidence that she was part of any CSAM. Mello’s graphic disturbing social media posts are not evidence. Lawsuits filed by alleged victims are not evidence. Just because something is in a legal document doesn’t make it true.
Until someone testifies under oath at trial, and undergoes cross examination, and a jury determines it’s true, it is all just speculation.
Try the murder first. A murder we now know was conspired to and premeditated. ZH….judge, jury, executioner. Think about that. That someone might tell somebody else that you did something bad that you didn’t do. That second person decides to kill you because they think it’s true. So they do. Your killer thinks he should be excused for it because he really thought you were bad.
Try the murder first. Other’s will be tried for their crimes.

 

[Observe_dont_Absorb]

Yes and that he would only do it if it was necessary! So ‘he’ defined it as ‘necessary’. Wow, he obviously thinks that he has superior intellect to make that claim.

Maybe his version of 'necessary' was that every form of authority had been alerted and failed to act or intervene and that he believed the child was still being abused?

Perhaps he had already defined his version of 'necessary' and when it was breached he wanted to act? Perhaps he had already decided to surrender his future life (a suicidal stance). Perhaps he felt his life had no meaning and therefore this was the task he was put on earth to fulfil or some other sort of 'destiny / fate / purpose' type beliefs. Perhaps he believed his was acting on orders from god / higher power.

Obviously it's not OK to kill a person because you've decided they are harming a child but we don't know his thinking. He's not a stupid person and he had built a philosophy. I don't think that necessarily means he thinks his superior? It could actually mean he's incredibly vulnerable, possibly has obsessive and fixating sides to his thinking and was overwhelmed and going out of his mind. That type of thing can happen with highly functioning eccentric and profoundly mentally unwell people who pull off appearing normal to the wider world. JMO MOO

 

[Observe_dont_Absorb]

I kinda agree.
We will find out at Post’s trial I think. As of now there is no evidence that she was part of any CSAM. Mello’s graphic disturbing social media posts are not evidence. Lawsuits filed by alleged victims are not evidence. Just because something is in a legal document doesn’t make it true.
Until someone testifies under oath at trial, and undergoes cross examination, and a jury determines it’s true, it is all just speculation.
Try the murder first. A murder we now know was conspired to and premeditated. ZH….judge, jury, executioner. Think about that. That someone might tell somebody else that you did something bad that you didn’t do. That second person decides to kill you because they think it’s true. So they do. Your killer thinks he should be excused for it because he really thought you were bad.
Try the murder first. Other’s will be tried for their crimes.

They should have done Post's trial first IMO.

What if it turns out there were indeed tens of thousands of images and videos and they were being distributed and sold to abusers? And that the wild and outlandish allegations that have been made, not yet verified, are true?

Conversely, let's just imagine there's zero truth to the allegations, not a single image, not a single complaint, and no abuse evidence whatsoever and the daughter confirms nothing happened. There we would see the accused is a vulnerable man who has been wildly and horrifically manipulated by Mello, we would see that ZH is gullible and lacks boundaries and has been weaponised by an abuser. We would maybe see a psychiatrist comment that this sort of thing is a particular severe mental health disorder, that ZH has been exploited due to his profound vulnerabilities.

I suspect there is proof of the allegations and maybe Mello desperately tried to go through the correct channels. In the end perhaps he wound up and motivated ZH to act on his behalf, don't suppose ZH needed or wanted the money on offer, he's not a 'hit man'. Why didn't ZH just deploy an actual hit man or do the job himself one wonders? If there is proof it should be informed to the jury IMO. MOO JMO

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“I told him, John, there’s no amount of money that would ever tempt me to do something like this,” said Hughes. “I told him I was insulted that he even thought that it would be something I would consider.”

“I knew that I had a duty to do this to save a child,” said Hughes.

The judge instructed Hughes that he could not make comments alleging that Parcell had sexually abused her child.

“I put my hand on the Bible and made an oath to tell the whole truth,” Hughes responded. “I am a little confused.”

https://www.wspa.com/news/local-news/new-details-on-the-canebrake-murder-trial-zachary-hughes-takes-the-stand/

 

[Skigirl]

In essence, his testimony is that there's no amount of money that would make him commit a murder, he would do it for free if it was justified... except that he did accept money, once the offer was doubled. JMO