FBI searching for Sarm Heslop's boyfriend Ryan Bane who sailed off on his yacht after her disappearance: Report
ST. JOHN, US VIRGIN ISLANDS: Ryan Bane, the boyfriend of missing Briton Sarm Heslop, has reportedly disappeared after sailing away from the U.S. Virgin Islands on Thursday. A source told the New York Post that FBI agents scrambled to find him and chartered a boat for the search after he sailed off St. John last week.
Rick Smith, who runs Cimarron Yacht Charter in St. John, told The Post that Bane's catamaran remained anchored off the coast of the island until a few days ago. A Coast Guard helicopter appeared on the scene the day after Heslop was reported missing, he said, but added that he did not see Coast Guard divers or boats searching the waters.
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Bane's Virgin Islands-based attorney David Cattie told the Detriot News that his client has handed over Heslop's phone and other possessions to the police, and is actively cooperating with them to find her. According to the Virgin Islands Police, Bane is neither a suspect nor a person of interest in the case.
But his yacht, the Siren Song, disappeared from Frank Bay on Thursday, after having remained anchored there for weeks after Heslop's disappearance on March 7. “He could have gone anywhere — to a Dutch, French, or even British island where there is no extradition,” Smith told The Post, noting that the British Virgin Islands is only five miles away from St. John.
The FBI declined to comment on the case but revealed that its division headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, was assisting the U.S. Virgin Island Police Department in the investigation, according to The Post.
On March 10, divers from various local and federal law enforcement agencies, and other citizens, formed a dive search party to try to locate 41-year-old Sarm Haslop, who was reported missing on March 8. Unfortunately, this effort proved unsuccessful. pic.twitter.com/u480DVyEAS
— United States Virgin Islands Police Department (@VirginIslandsPD) March 10, 2021
This comes shortly after Kate Owens, a friend of the couple who moved with Heslop to the Caribbean 15 months ago, reportedly told her friends she does not understand why Bane has stopped contacting her and is refusing to cooperate with detectives.
"She is a daughter, a sister, a niece, and an auntie. A Godmother, a girlfriend, a colleague, and my best friend," Owens said of her missing pal Heslop, as quoted by The Mirror. "We will not leave quietly, we need a thorough investigation, we deserve answers. She deserves answers."
Anna Wilson, another friend of Heslop's, said she was worried about claims that Bane was refusing to talk to investigators. "Ryan had contact with Kate [Owens] in the early stages but ceased contact," Wilson, for whom Heslop was a bridesmaid, told The Mirror.
When asked what Bane had told Owens, Wilson said: "He just said everything was fine and they had dinner out and then took the dinghy back to the boat. Nothing seemed untoward. They went back to the boat at about 10 pm and watched a film. Ryan said that he woke and realized she was gone but that her phone and wallet were still aboard the boat."
According to The Telegraph, police are scouring through CCTV footage from the island to trace Heslop's movements that night in order to verify Bane's version of the events. "Nothing so far actually confirms the couple went back to the yacht together that night," said Tony Derima, a spokesman for the Virgin Islands Police Department.