Killer who hid pregnant wife’s body under patio for 23 years asked son to dig up her remains
Killer Andrew Griggs tried to manipulate his son into digging up his mother’s remains in a chilling plot to clear his own name
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A “callous” father who murdered his wife and hid her body under a patio for 23 years asked their son to dig her up and send a hair to police in an audacious plot to clear his own name.
Andrew Griggs, who is already serving a life sentence with a minimum of 20 years for killing devoted mother-of-three Debbie Griggs, has been jailed for three more years after he tried to manipulate one of their sons into exhuming her body from prison.
The former fisherman, 62, was convicted of Ms Griggs’ murder in 2019 following a cold case investigation into her disappearance in 1999, after she vanished while she was three months pregnant with their fourth child. Her body had never been found.
Despite maintaining his innocence, he later revealed to his son in a prison visit that her remains were sealed in a water butt buried under the concrete base of a shed at his home in Dorset.
He instructed him to dig it up, remove a strand of her hair, take it abroad and post it back to the UK with a letter pretending to be from Ms Griggs to prove she was still alive.
Specialist officers and staff excavated the back garden of his home in St Leonards, Dorset, in October 2022.
Her body was found in a barrel-shaped container wrapped in blue tarpaulin under the base of what had previously been a lean-to shed. Also inside were clothes along with a pillowcase, duvet and a boot liner matching one missing from the mother’s Peugeot 306.
It is believed Griggs wrapped the clothing he was wearing when he killed the former nurse in the boot liner before placing them on top of her inside the container.
When Griggs was interviewed about the discovery, he declined to answer any questions but delivered a pre-prepared statement in which he still maintained he was not responsible for Ms Grigg’s death.
He claimed he found a body inside a container in someone else’s garden around two years after he had reported her missing.
He said he panicked and encased the container in fibreglass before someone else buried it, and although he suspected it was beneath his garden shed he did not know for sure.
Griggs was charged with perverting the course of justice, which he later admitted, and obstructing a coroner in the execution of their duty.
In a hearing at Canterbury Crown Court on Monday he was ordered to serve an additional three years in prison.
Detective Chief Inspector Neil Kimber said Griggs’ lies and attempt to recruit a family member to clear his own name are an “insult” to the mother’s memory.
“Debbie Griggs was a devoted mother whose love for her three children was never in doubt, and it is inconceivable that she would have ever walked out on them,” he said.
“Her husband Andrew has known this ever since he first reported her missing, by which point he had already brutally murdered Debbie and hidden her body. He then continued to lie and manipulate others even after her remains were eventually discovered, making up further ridiculous stories that are an insult to Debbie’s memory and to everyone who continues to mourn her loss.
“The fact he asked a family member to dig up her remains shows what a callous and selfish person he is, sparing little to no thought as to the deeply devastating effect such an act would likely have on that person.
“Andrew Griggs is already serving a life sentence for Debbie’s murder but our investigation into these further offences was about more than achieving another positive court outcome.
“It was about securing justice for Debbie and her family and friends, and ensuring the general public know exactly the lengths Griggs was willing to go to in order to escape the consequences of his disgusting actions.”
Katie Samways from the Crown Prosecution Service said the case was “one of the worst examples imaginable” of perverting the course of justice.
“Andrew Griggs spent decades lying to everyone around him, claiming that Debbie’s disappearance was nothing to do with him,” she added.
“Once convicted of her murder, in a desperate attempt to prove his innocence, he tried to manipulate his son into helping him in the most appalling way possible.
“Griggs deliberately failed to reveal the location of Debbie’s body, adding immeasurably to the distress of her family and friends.”
She added: “None of us can imagine the impact that Griggs’ actions have had on everyone around him.
“Now, more than 25 years after Debbie first disappeared, we hope that her family and friends can now finally put this chapter of their lives behind them, knowing Andrew Griggs has been fully held to account not just for Debbie’s murder, but also for the lies he continually told in the intervening period.”
Prosecutors: Kylee Monteiro’s boyfriend confessed to stabbing teen to death, burying body on property
August 20, 2025 11:07 am
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TAUNTON, Mass. (WLNE) — The suspect in the murder of 18-year-old Kylee Monteiro faced a judge Wednesday morning, after the prosecuting attorney said 22-year-old Gregory Groom confessed to police.
His court appearance came one day after what the Bristol County District Attorney said were believed to be Monteiro’s remains were found in Groom’s backyard in Rehoboth.
Prosecutors said Groom told police he stabbed Monteiro to death behind his shed and buried her in the woods nearby.
According to the prosecutor, Groom told the Rehoboth Police Department during a Tuesday interview that Monteiro arrived at his County Street home on Aug. 6.
Groom told police Monteiro had taken a ride-sharing service from a residential program to his house, according to the prosecution, which said he told detectives she was there looking to stay with him as she was 11 weeks pregnant with his child.
Prosecutors said Groom told police that he and Monteiro then had a fight over whether she could stay at his house, and told detectives she then walked up the driveway and disappeared.
Monteiro was reported missing on Aug. 7.
But upon further investigation, the district attorney said detectives uncovered text messages sent that night from Monteiro to her sister, saying she had been attacked by Groom.
According to the prosecution, Monteiro told her sister her phone was dying, and they said the last message she sent read: “If I die it was Greg.”
Police told Groom that they had obtained an “extensive” search warrant for his 25-acre property on County Street.
This followed another search of the property, which yielded no results, and the search for Monteiro continued as she had failed to make contact with friends or family.
- Kylee Monteiro (courtesy: Faith Monteiro)
- Kylee Monteiro (Faith Monteiro)
- Kylee Monteiro (courtesy: Faith Monteiro)
- Kylee Monteiro (Faith Monteiro)
Police informed Groom that the next search would include dogs, excavators, state chemists and other investigators and equipment.
At this time, according to the prosecution, Groom paused and was given an opportunity to tell police where Monteiro’s body was located.
Prosecutors said Groom then drew a map showing where on the property the incident occurred.
He confessed to police, according to the prosecuting attorney, that he and Monteiro had gotten into the fight behind a shed on the property.
The prosecutor said Groom told police that he stabbed Monteiro twice in the neck and once in the chest with a kitchen knife, killing her.
The attack was so fierce, according to the prosecution, the knife Groom allegedly used snapped in Monteiro’s chest.
Groom told police he spent all night digging a hole into the early hours of the morning, pushing her in and covering her just as the sun was coming up, according to prosecutors.
Based on a map drawn by Groom, the prosecution said detectives were able to uncover the spot in the woods where Monteiro was buried, which was covered up with brush and trees.
A body consistent with Kylee Monteiro was discovered in the five-foot hole, according to the prosecuting attorney, who said the knife was also inside.
The body is currently with the chief medical examiner for identification and an autopsy.
The prosecution requested that Groom be held without bail, which was granted, and probable cause hearing will be held on Sept. 10.
The family told ABC6 a vigil for Monteiro still will be held Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Redway Plain off Route 44 in Rehoboth.
