The mother of a woman who went missing from a yacht in the Caribbean has described the "torture" of not knowing if her daughter is alive or dead. Sarm Heslop, from Southampton, Hampshire, was 41 when she went missing in the early hours of March 8, 2021.
She had been on a catamaran owned and operated by her American boyfriend, Ryan Bane, off the coast of St John in the US Virgin Islands. Despite the long-running #FindSarm appeal to highlight her case, no details have emerged as to the whereabouts of the former flight attendant.
Her mum, Brenda Street, told the Daily Mail: “My heart is breaking but I need to see she’s gone before I can say she’s dead. Not knowing is torture.”
Ms Street and Sarm's father, Peter Heslop, from Essex, have previously travelled to the Caribbean island as part of the search. But her friends have said they feel abandoned by the USVI and UK authorities.
Ms Street, 66, told the Mail that after her daughter’s disappearance she received a text message from Mr Bane asking her to ring him. She said that in a WhatsApp video call, Mr Bane, who had been dating Ms Heslop for eight months, told her that she had gone missing after they had been out for a meal and then watched a film onboard the yacht.
He had said that he had fallen asleep but had been woken by the anchor alarm which sounds when movement is detected, she said. She told the newspaper that he had then informed the police when he found Ms Heslop was not there.
Ms Street said this made her feel “totally numb”. Calling on Mr Bane to provide the police with everything he knows about her daughter’s disappearance, she added: “If your loved one has gone missing, wouldn’t you do everything you could to help? Why would you not?”
Saying she believed her daughter would not have gone away without telling them, she added: “She could have fallen overboard, but she is a very, very strong swimmer.”
Ms Street added that she felt frustrated by the Virgin Islands police investigation and the response by the Foreign Office which she said was setting up six-monthly meetings to discuss updates. She said: “It’s unacceptable.
"I need to know someone is doing something. We’ve got so many unanswered questions.”
