A man who murdered his pregnant wife in 1999 asked his son to cut a lock of his mum’s hair to prove she was still alive.
Debbie Griggs, 34, vanished without a trace from her home in Deal, Kent, only for her remains to be discovered 20 years later in 2022.
Andrew Griggs, 62, claimed that his wife had left him when he had, in fact, murdered her and disposed of her body.
The sailor, who was jailed for life in 2019 following a cold case review, asked his son during a prison visit to exhume his mum’s decomposing body.
A court heard today that Griggs asked his son to post a hair strand to the UK from abroad to pretend Debbie was alive, only for his son to tell the police about the plan.
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Griggs has long claimed to be innocent of murder, despite providing his son with a detailed description of where Debbie’s body was buried.
His son, who had visited Griggs in prison, told police that his mother’s body was in the garden of his father’s home in St Leonard’s, Dorset.
Debbie’s remains were found inside a barrel-shaped container wrapped in tarp underneath the concrete base of an old shed in October 2022, along with the lining of Debbie’s car book, Griggs’ clothes from the day of her murder, and their duvet and pillow.
Griggs was jailed for another three years at Canterbury Crown Court, having admitted perverting the course of justice.
Detective Chief Inspector Neil Kimber said: ‘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.
‘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.’
Katie Samways, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: ‘Andrew Griggs spent decades lying to everyone around him, claiming that Debbie’s disappearance was nothing to do with him.
‘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.
‘This is one of the worst examples imaginable of perverting the course of justice and when Griggs was sentenced for Debbie’s murder, the judge highlighted the concealment of her body as a significant aggravating factor.’
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