A former London police officer has been found guilty of murdering his American wife in Georgia, with prosecutors saying he brutally bludgeoned her with a rubber mallet, staged the scene to resemble a suicide, and hoped to flee the country unnoticed — all in a desperate bid to secure U.S. residency.
Brian McManus, 57, was convicted last Saturday by a Houston County jury for the November 2023 murder of Lucille McManus, 63, in Warner Robins — about 100 miles south of Atlanta. The Houston County District Attorney’s Office announced the conviction in a statement posted on Facebook, calling the case a “brutal and calculated” act.
“McManus tried to cover the murder up, pin it on the victim’s family, and walk away without consequence,” the DA’s office wrote. “He failed. Because of the work of the Warner Robins Police Department, forensic experts, and prosecutors Justin Duane and Lauren Fletcher, the truth won out.”
According to court documents, McManus called 911 around 9 a.m. on the day of the murder, claiming he had found his wife dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. However, investigators quickly noted glaring inconsistencies. There was no firearm near the body, no shell casings, and Lucille had suffered blunt-force trauma to the head, not a gunshot, WMAZ reported.
Authorities later uncovered security footage showing McManus taking his dog for a walk shortly before calling 911. In the footage, he carried a bag believed to contain the murder weapon — a rubber mallet, which was later recovered near the same route.
Prosecutors also highlighted McManus’s background. He had been fired from the London Metropolitan Police following misconduct allegations by multiple women and had previously faced domestic violence accusations in a failed American marriage in Idaho.
McManus met Lucille on Tinder, and within three months, they were married. Witnesses testified that the marriage was part of a scheme to obtain a Green Card. Prosecutors alleged that when Lucille threatened to expose the fraudulent marriage after discovering texts revealing his affair with a woman in Florida, McManus chose murder over deportation.
He also attempted to retrieve a vehicle containing a stash of cash shortly before his arrest, leading police to believe he intended to flee the country. Upon arrest, McManus had fresh scratches on his arm, which he couldn’t explain. He also washed his clothes before officers arrived, and initially tried to blame Lucille’s granddaughter and her boyfriend, though they were proven to be miles away at the time.
McManus was scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday afternoon and now faces life in prison for a murder prosecutors describe as the act of an “evil sociopath.”