Mother of Brit air hostess Sarm Heslop who vanished from her American boyfriend’s luxury

The mother of a British air hostess who vanished three years ago in the US Virgin Islands has begged US President Joe Biden to help find her daughter as she blasts local police for having ‘not done their job as human beings’.

Sarm Heslop, 41, from Southampton, was living in the idyllic US Virgin Islands – a group of tropical Caribbean islands – with her new boyfriend Ryan Bane, who she had matched with on Tinder in 2020.

The pair were living and working on Banes £500,000 yacht named Siren Song, but in the middle of the night on March 8 2021, Heslop vanished without a trace and is still officially missing.

Her mother Brenda Street now believes she was killed and has pleaded President Biden to help finally locate her.

Speaking from her Essex home, the devastated mother revealed she emailed the head of state asking for his assistance.

Street told Sky News: ‘I emailed President Biden but he didn’t reply. I’m asking for his assistance, for some department of his to help us’.

Heslop and Bane, from Michigan, had been out at a sports bar in Frank Bat, St John, the night before she went missing.

Bane reported his girlfriend missing to the Virgin Islands Police Department at 2.30am the following morning and claimed he woke up to find her gone.

He was advised to immediately get in touch with the coastguard, but reportedly didn’t do so until nine hours later.

When officials eventually boarded the catamaran, a coastguard report alleged Bane was ‘highly intoxicated’ and prevented a search of the cabin.

No suspects were wanted in connection with her disappearance and there seemed to be no explanation as to how the strong swimmer vanished. 

Island police have never interviewed Bane or forensically tested the boat, and Bane refused assistance offered by the FBI – forcing Heslop’s mother to desperately seek the help of the Biden.’They’ve not done their jobs as police officers, not done their job as human beings,’ she said, as she called for the US authorities to take over the case from the Virgin Islands police.

In a latest update on the case, speaking to Fox News earlier this month, a private investigator hired by Heslop’s family revealed Bane had replaced the freezer on their boat after she disappeared.

David Johnston, who is working the case on behalf of the Heslop family, said Bane had parts of the boat changed out following her disappearance.

Johnston told the outlet: ‘We know he went to Grenada afterwards and had the freezer replaced on the boat. Why? We know he had other parts of the forecabin replaced. Why?’

This has led to Heslop’s parents to believe she was murdered, claiming their daughter was the victim of foul play and the case is not a missing person.

‘I do believe she was murdered,’ Street told Sky News. 

‘There are places where people can be put in the ocean and never found. I believe that’s what happened’.

The former Metropolitan Police homicide commander has also contacted the Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron to urge him to push the US authorities to oversee the current Virgin Islands Police Department Investigation.

He told Sky News: ‘What I think we really need now is for David Cameron as the foreign secretary to hold his counterpart in the US… to demand the governor on the island, please give clear and unambiguous answers to the family regarding what they’ve done or what else could be done’. 

He also asked him to consider formally interviewing Bane to find out what happened that night.

Bane had previously been convicted in 2011 of domestic violence against his wife at the time, Corie Stevenson.

In a statement, a lawyer for Mr Bane said: ‘While we empathise with Sarm’s family’s frustration, Ryan Bane had nothing to do with Sarm’s disappearance. 

‘Ryan is heartbroken that Sarm went missing… The coastguard was twice on the vessel conducting a search and questioning Ryan. They had unfettered access to the vessel and Ryan answered all questions posed to him.’ 

Local police failed to get a search warrant for his catamaran, Siren Song, before Bane sailed it out of their jurisdiction and is said to have now sold it.

Johnston added: ‘Sarm likely is dead, and her death was untimely and could have been a murder. It could’ve been an accident, but no one will speak with us.’

According to the PI, he first offered to help with the case 18 months ago and reached out to the Governor of the Virgin Islands and the Police Commissioner.

Johnston claims he has been unable to get any results and says the two have stopped responding to the family and him.

He added: ‘I’ve been spun along for the last 15 months by the governor and [Police Commissioner] Ray Martinez, who said, ‘You’re welcome to come and look at the seat, but we’re not going to talk about the inquiry. It’s an active investigation, and we don’t discuss active investigations’.’

Johnston added: ‘At very minimum, Bane should have been interviewed under caution.

‘From my experience of 30 years of being a cop, he is a person of significant interest, and he has some questions to answer.

‘And until he does that, he should remain as the most likely suspect in her disappearance and possible death.’

Under US law Bane is classified as ‘a person of interest’ as he was the last person to see Miss Heslop.

But he is not classified as a suspect and officers need to show a probable cause’ for a search warrant.

A UK Foreign Office spokesperson said: ‘We are assisting the family of a British woman who has been reported missing in the US Virgin Islands and are in contact with the US Virgin Islands Police and the US coastguard.’