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A true crime fan accused of stabbing her boyfriend to death has said he asked her whether she was going to stab him ‘in a playful tone’ weeks before his death.
Shaye Groves, 27, allegedly stabbed boyfriend Frankie Fitzgerald, 25, to death with a dagger she kept under her pillow in a ‘passionate’ attack at her home in Havant, Hampshire.
The court previously heard how she rang a friend ‘giggling’ after killing her lover before making a ‘false alibi’ for herself, inspired by tips from true crime documentaries.
Such was her interest in murderers, Groves had framed portraits of notorious serial killers such as Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer on her bedroom wall alongside ‘decorative’ daggers and a coffin-shaped bookshelf.
Shaye Groves, 27, allegedly murdered her boyfriend with a Celtic-style knife she bought for her ‘rituals’
Groves said she kept pictures of notorious serial killers on her wall, including Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer
A friend of Groves previously told jurors the two had ‘joked’ about Mr Fitzgerald ending up ‘on the wall’ as there was ‘space for him’.
Groves denies murdering the young father by stabbing him 22 times in a ‘crime of passion’ on July 17 last year.
Giving evidence at Winchester Crown Court, Hants, the mother-of-one was questioned on her choice of room decorations.
She said she ‘thought they looked cool’ and that she ‘wanted to shock people’.
Groves, a self described pagan, also explained that she bought a Celtic dagger, allegedly used to stab Mr Fitzgerald, for her ‘rituals’, adding that it ‘strengthened spiritual connections’.
The 27 year-old, who appeared tearful as she was called to give evidence, said: ‘(The pictures) are from an artist on Etsy.
‘They’re not photos – they are art. I thought they looked pretty cool and it’s different. I’m also a massive Disney fan (but) I wanted my bedroom to be completely different and to shock people.
‘The knives were on my wall for decorative purposes’.
And, when asked why she had a coffin-shaped bookshelf, Groves said: ‘It was my humour. If I die in my bed, roll me over and put me in a coffin. That’s what I used to say.’
Groves denies murdering boyfriend Frankie Fitzgerald, 25, (pictured) by stabbing him 22 times
She described her sense of humour as ‘dark, twisted, and unpleasant’ to the rest of society.
Groves also admitted to joking frequently about rape, murder, and starvation, explaining: ‘I get a lot of unpleasant thoughts which I make light of’.
When asked why she bought the Celtic knife and slept with it under her pillow, she said: ‘Celtic is big in paganism so I thought it would go nice with my rituals.
‘I kept it under my pillow, one, because it’s a good thing to do because it brings spiritual connection together and, two, for protection.
‘I felt safer having it easily accessible, especially as the months (with Frankie) went on’.
The court heard how, just weeks before his death, Mr Fitzgerald ‘joked’ about how she was going to stab him with the knife.
Groves continued: ‘There was one occasion where he asked if I was going to stab him with (the knife) but it was in a playful tone’.
Groves denies murder, claiming she acted in self-defence.
She told the court that Mr Fitzgerald had developed a cocaine habit and that he would often get ‘really aggressive’ when he was high.
The jury were shown a video in which Groves claimed Mr Fitzgerald had raped her anally.
Towards the end of the footage, he can be heard saying: ‘That was a little bit rapey, wasn’t it?’
Groves told the court: ‘I believe he knew exactly what he had just done. He had anally raped me.
‘He didn’t think about my feelings at all. It was very painful.
‘I blamed myself at the time because I didn’t actually say no.
‘It was something that I just ignored and we put behind us’.
The trial continues.
