CRUZ BAY — The family and friends of a British woman missing from a yacht off St. John have criticized police for not releasing surveillance video of her last sighting.
Sarm Heslop, from Southampton, was reported missing by her boyfriend Ryan Bane off Frank Bay on March 8, 2021.
A year after she vanished, her parents met with police where they were shown footage of the couple leaving a bar.
They say the clothes their daughter was wearing in the video did not match those reported by Bane.
The BBC has contacted Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) and Bane’s lawyer for comment.
Heslop’s parents, Peter Heslop and Brenda Street, had previously been told there was no CCTV recording from the bar “420 to Center”, her friends in the UK have said.
But when they visited the island in March — a year after their daughter’s disappearance — they were shown the footage of the couple as they left the bar.
In the CCTV Heslop is seen wearing either a skirt or shorts and a top, the BBC was told.
“Her boyfriend, Ryan Bane, told police and Sarm’s parents and friends that she was wearing a black dress with flowers on.
“There was not a black dress with flowers on in her belongings when these were returned to her parents some months after her disappearance,” her friends added.
Her parents and friends say they have repeatedly asked the island’s police for a copy of the CCTV footage so they could release it to the media.
“But the USVI Police have declined to provide this stating that it would jeopardise the ongoing investigation.
“Why would police not release the CCTV footage of Sarm’s last movements?” they said.
Since Heslop’s family visited St John in March “little to no communication has been received from the U.S. authorities regarding the investigation,” they added.
Heslop, a former flight attendant, had been staying and working with Michigan native Bane on the catamaran.
He reported her missing to police at 2:30 a.m. on March 8 but it was a further nine hours before he called the coastguard, shortly after 11:45 a.m.
Heslop’s possessions, including her bank cards and mobile phone, were still onboard the catamaran when she vanished.
In April 2021, the island’s police force said detectives had been unable to confirm if she was onboard the catamaran as reported by Mr Bane on 7 March.
Bane, the last person to have seen her, has previously declined detectives’ request for an interview, according to the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD).
A full forensic search of the catamaran has never been carried out.
Heslop’s friends set up a Facebook page to share information about her disappearance and previously offered a reward of up to $10,000 for information.
SOURCE: BBC