Framed portraits of some of Britain’s most notorious serial killers – including the likes of the Yorkshire Ripper, Rose West and Myra Hindley – adorned the bedroom wall of true crime fan accused of murdering her boyfriend in his sleep, a court heard.
Mother-of-one Shaye Groves is said to have plunged a dagger she kept in a bedside cabinet into the body of her 25-year-old lover Frankie Fitzgerald 22 times during a ‘passionate’ attack at her home in Leigh Park, Hampshire, on July 17 last year.
Jurors at Groves’ murder trial were shown the twisted collection of portraits, which prosecutors say were hanging on the wall of 27-year-old’s bedroom.
Among them was a chilling image of killer Myra Hindley who – with her lover Ian Brady – kidnapped, molested and slaughtered five children around Manchester in the 1960s. Hindley’s picture features her bleeding from the eyes.
Other portraits included sickening images of American brutes Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer and Rose West, who with her husband Fred, went on a heinous 20-year crime spree, killing at least 10 women in their Gloucestershire ‘house of horrors’.
A wall of horror: Alleged murderer Shaye Groves had portraits of some of the world’s most notorious serial killers hanging on her wall, prosecutors have claimed
Groves, 27, is alleged to have stabbed her boyfriend, Frankie Fitzgerald, to death while he slept in a crime of ‘passion’. She is pictured posing in front of an image of the Yorkshire Ripper, Peter Sutcliffe, left, and American Ted Bundy
Winchester Crown Court previously heard Groves rang a friend ‘giggling’ after killing her lover and then showed his body saying: ‘I’ve done him’.
Groves was allegedly ‘obsessed’ with Mr Fitzgerald’s ‘performance in the bedroom’, with the couple’s sex life involving bondage, dominance, submission and masochism, jurors heard.
Vikki Baitup, Groves’ friend, told police she suspected Groves got a ‘thrill’ from the ‘abusive’ sexual nature of their relationship.
Groves denies murdering the young father by stabbing him 22 times in a ‘crime of passion’.
Giving evidence at Winchester Crown Court, Ms Baitup was shown exhibits of the dagger, alleged to have been used in the murder, and a BB gun belonging to Groves.
Examining the blade, Ms Baitup said: ‘Yes, it belongs to Shaye, she keeps in the bottom drawer beside her bed.’
Ms Baitup also told the court Groves used to carry a ‘combat blade’ around and ‘tuck it into her boot’.
The court has previously heard that after the killing Groves made a ‘false alibi’ for herself, inspired by tips from true crime documentaries to avoid getting caught after her alleged crime.
Jurors were shown an image of a dagger (pictured) that prosecutors say was used by Groves to murder her boyfriend
Photos of a BB gun, which police say was hidden in a drawer in Groves’ bedroom, were also shown to the jury at Winchester Crown Court
Ms Baitup also told jurors the two had ‘joked’ about Mr Fitzgerald ending up ‘on the wall’ as there was ‘space for him’ alongside the serial killers hanging on it.
Earlier, prosecutors told jurors the defendant had lied to police, telling officers Mr Fitzgerald had raped her – and that Groves had previously threatened to leak a sex tape of them on Facebook to ‘make his life a misery’.
The mother fabricated claims her boyfriend had abused and raped her, and had previously threatened to make his life ‘a misery’ by leaking videos of the pair – alleged to have started using cocaine together in the months before the killing – having sex.
However, jurors heard that Groves was ‘obsessed’ with Mr Fitzgerald’s ‘performance in the bedroom’, with the couple’s sex life involving bondage, dominance, submission and masochism – and that the recordings had showed the sexual acts had been ‘consensual’.
Groves had even told Mr Fitzgerald she could be woken by sexual intercourse, in a note written by the accused, the court was told.
The defendant had also blackmailed another lover with a sex tape by threatening to show the video to his new girlfriend if he didn’t do what she wanted – namely, a lift into town and back for a night out, prosecutors alleged.
Groves claimed to police she had been raped by Mr Fitzgerald (pictured). But prosecutors argue this was never the case and said sex between the couple had been consensual
Groves was said to have told her boyfriend he was allowed to wake her for sex in a written note to Mr Fitzgerald. She is pictured in her home before allegedly killing the 25-year-old
A note read out in court said: ‘I, Shaye Groves give Frankie Fitzgerald permission to wake me up through sexual intercourse from the date of 22 March until further notice.’
The mother-of-one was said to have owned four ‘decorative’ knives – with depictions of film villains Chuckie, Jigsaw and Pennywise on – which she and Mr Fitzgerald used for ‘knife play’ in the bedroom.
Winchester Crown Court heard the couple had a camera set up in the bedroom which captured them having sex – the recordings of which Groves was said to use to blackmail lovers.
In her interview with police, which was played in court, Ms Baitup said: ‘She compiles evidence against everyone to see how she can use them as leverage.’
Ms Baitup also told officers Groves had a violent history, recounting two occasions in which she attacked Lauren White, who lived with her – once with nail clippers, leaving her head bleeding.
Groves told police she had been attacked and raped by Mr Fitzgerald, but the prosecution say all sex between them was consensual and ‘they had a safe word’.
Jurors heard Ms Baitup tell police she thought Groves got a ‘thrill’ from the alleged sexual abuse she had clips of.
Vikki Baitup, Groves’ friend, told police she suspected Groves got a ‘thrill’ from the ‘abusive’ sexual nature of their relationship. Ms Baitup is pictured arriving at Winchester Crown Court on Tuesday
‘I think Shaye got some sort of thrill or enjoyment from being in the relationship,’ she said.
‘I got the impression she got a thrill from some of the abuse.’
In a later interview with police, Ms Baitup said Groves had been seeing another man alongside Mr Fitzgerald, in a ‘balancing act’. She told police: ‘It was so close to the two of them seeing each other. Shaye was playing [them]. You never knew which one was going to turn up.’
Jurors heard that Groves was ‘not shy about talking about her sex life’ – having made an agreement with Mr Fitzgerald she could be woken up ‘by sexual intercourse until further notice’ in a written note.
It was signed by Groves, Mr Fitzgerald and Ms Baitup as a witness – who told police the two had picked up a cocaine habit a couple of months prior to the killing.
Explaining Groves’ previous violence to Ms White, Ms Baitup said she had ‘swiped’ at Ms White with nail clippers, leaving a ‘gash’ in her head – and her anger only subsiding after she ‘saw a bit of blood – she calmed down’.
The court has previously heard that after the killing Groves made a ‘false alibi’ for herself, inspired by tips from true crime documentaries to avoid getting caught after her ‘crime of passion’.
A pathologist’s report read to the court explained Mr Fitzgerald was stabbed 17 times to the front of the chest, twice to other chest areas and three to times to the neck – resulting in his death after ‘multiple perforations of heart and lungs’ and ‘catastrophic blood loss’.
Footage from officers who arrived at the scene was also played to the court, who reported an ‘incredibly strong’ smell of bleach in the bedroom.
Groves denies murder, claiming she acted in self defence.
The trial continues.
DailyMail
