Sarah Groves' family 'will fight on for justice'

The parents of a woman who was murdered more than a decade ago have said they will never stop fighting for justice for her.

Sarah Groves, 24, from Guernsey was found dead on a houseboat she was staying on in Kashmir in April 2013.

Her parents, Kate and Vic Groves, have said their hopes are fading the man accused of killing her, Dutchman Richard de Wit, who denies murder, will ever face trial. His case was suspended in July 2021 when he was deemed medically unfit to stand trial.

Mr and Mrs Groves have continued to fundraise for Guernsey's underprivileged families in their daughter's memory despite saying they "feel helpless" about the trial.

Sarah's father Vic said the couple knew "almost from day one, the trial, which began in 2013, was unlike anything we'd seen before within the legal profession".

"It limped on for many many years and eventually by 2021 then we'd had about 250 hearings, of which very few made any progress," he said.

"He's [de Wit] languishing in the jail, we get a monthly or bi-monthly theoretical report saying he's mentally unfit to stand trial.

"I don't think it's going anywhere, so that side of it is a nil closure scenario - we don't definitively know what happened, who was responsible or the reasons behind it."

Sarah's mother Kate said she lived in "fading hope" of getting answers.

"It's a horrible realisation that we probably won't live to know why, for me the big thing is why, she literally wouldn't hurt a fly," she said.

"I can't count the times I think of Sarah, especially at times like this as we're approaching Christmas, she deserves someone to fight for her and as long as I have breath in my body I will fight for her."

The couple set up the Sarah Groves Foundation which works with various agencies, including States of Guernsey Social Services, HomeStart Guernsey and Help a Guernsey Child to donate bikes every Christmas.

She said the foundation was centred on "Sarah's approach to life, she just wanted to make everybody happy and that's that's why it's just so so special they go to children whose family can't afford to buy a bike".

Mrs Groves said the donation of 32 bikes was only possible because of "Guernsey folk... we couldn't do it without their kindness".

"I fear this may be our last because we haven't been able to raise the funds as much as we could," she added.

Ally de Carteret, from Dragonflies which helps distribute the bikes, said people worried about affording Christmas gifts and had "been in tears on the phone" when they found out they could receive a bike.

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