Two Michigan men say their cousin’s abusive ex-husband approached them in a Lake Orion gym before they sent him packing with questions about what happened to his missing girlfriend, who was last seen almost exactly three years ago.
A series of photos provided by the men show Ryan Bane, a former yachtsman whose girlfriend, Sarm Heslop, vanished off his catamaran in 2021, in a Planet Fitness gym in February.
They are the cousins of Corie Stevenson, Bane’s ex-wife who previously shared her story of physical abuse at his hands.
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The men said Bane approached one of them before they began taking pictures of him and asked if he’d “killed anyone lately” – a reference to Heslop’s unsolved disappearance, who was last seen leaving a bar with him three years ago this week.
They said Bane then left without further comment.
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Attempts to reach Bane were unsuccessful. He has not been charged with a crime in connection to Heslop’s disappearance, and his attorney previously denied any involvement on his client’s behalf.
A series of pictures show him in blue shorts and a sleeveless black shirt, carrying a mug and wearing earbuds.
He also appeared to have gotten in shape since Heslop vanished.
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After Heslop disappeared in 2021, Stevenson told Fox News Digital that Bane had a short temper and was so volatile she couldn’t leave him home alone with her daughter. However, she said, he was only violent with her once.
She divorced him following a domestic violence arrest in 2011, when she said he kicked her while she was driving home from a wedding, dragged her out of the car in their driveway, knocked out one of her teeth and squeezed her throat before he got up and went to bed. Bane pleaded guilty to domestic violence and served 21 days in jail, according to The Sun, which cited court documents.
Bane reported Heslop missing on March 8, 2021. At the time, the British national was working as a cook on his charter yacht based in the U.S. Virgin Islands and had previously been a flight attendant.
The couple went to dinner in St. John on March 7 and left around 10 p.m. Police have not publicly confirmed whether they believe she made it back to his yacht that evening.
Bane called 911 around 2:30 a.m. on March 8 to report that she wasn’t on board.
Virgin Islands police told him to contact the Coast Guard – but he reportedly did not do so for roughly 10 hours. Then he allegedly refused to allow responding sailors to search the cabin of his vessel.
Bane has not been charged with a crime in connection with Heslop’s disappearance.
However, her family continues to demand answers in the case and has received support from a former London homicide squad commander, David Johnston, former commander of Homicide and Serious Crime for the Metropolitan Police.
Her family this week is publicly acknowledging the likelihood that she is no longer alive, their supporters said in a statement Monday morning.
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“What we don’t know is how, if her death did occur on that boat, we don’t know how it befell her,” Johnston told Fox News Digital. “Whether through an accident or an argument or a completely violent act.”
Bane’s attorney, David Cattie, previously told Fox News Digital that his client would return to the Virgin Islands if his presence was “legally required.”
“Mr. Bane had nothing to do with Sarm’s disappearance and remains heartbroken that she is missing,” he said.
Police called Bane a “person of interest” in the case but did not obtain a search warrant for his yacht, which is believed to have since changed ownership.
Anyone with information on Heslop’s whereabouts is asked to contact the U.S. Virgin Islands Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
Police did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Original article source: Michigan men confront cousin’s abusive ex-husband at gym, demand answers about his missing girlfriend
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