My daughter was beaten to death and then dumped in a suitcase by her husband… I’m haunted by the thought that she screamed for me
NO ONE will ever know what Kirsty Grabham was thinking in her final moments as her husband beat her to death.
The 24-year-old model was violently attacked by Paul Grabham at their Swansea home, Walesafter a night out.
10
10
10
10
Grabham then tried to cut the model in half before putting her mutilated body in a suitcase swing it from a car window on the M4.
When she was finally found ten days later, Police found that Kirsty was “still warm” when she was crushed in the bag – suggesting she may still be alive.
This chilling theory has plagued her mother Cathy Broomfield in the 15 years since the brutal murder.
She is also haunted by her daughter’s final moments and fears that Kirsty called her with her dying breath as her life was cruelly snuffed out by the violent and controlling Grabham.
Speaking documentary The Suitcase Murders on Discovery+, the crying mother said: “To know she didn’t die instantly is such a kick in the teeth. It really is.
“I imagine he grabbed her like a rag doll because she was as big as he was. He must have bounced her off the wall and kicked her and punched her and broke her nose and jaw and then put her in that suitcase pushed.”
Cathy continued: “She really didn’t deserve that, no one does. All I can think about is her screaming for me as she is being killed, “Mommy, where are you? You’re not taking care of me now. Why aren’t you here? ‘
“What was she thinking when she was beaten to death?”
Kirsty and Grabham had only just married four months before the brutal murder in April 2009.
Although it was a whirlwind romance, the model had always wanted a husband and a family and initially seemed happy.
But soon, cracks began to appear in their and Grabham’s relationship.Prince Charming” mask slipped off quickly.
In a chilling diary entry before her death, Kirsty had written: ‘Paul, I don’t know why you went crazy tonight for no reason at all, you just went crazy and flew out of control.
“I was sitting here on the edge of the couch wondering what you’re going to do next one.”
On March 27, 2009, the couple had gone out in Swansea, but Grabham stormed off and took a taxi home.
Kirsty later returned home and messaged a friend saying her husband was sleeping on the floor so she could have the bed to herself.
Three days later, Grabham walked into a police station and reported her missing, but failed to omit key details of the last night Kirsty was seen alive.
Brutal murder
Police soon discovered that the couple had a heated argument while they were out and there was a history by domestic violence in their relationship.
Grabham had been on sex-seeking websites and had previously strangled Kirsty.
Officers thought they had their prime suspect but struggled to find evidence, especially since they still had no body.
But on April 4, Grabham was arrested on suspicion of murder and police were able to search the marital home.
They discovered blood spatter on the walls and ceiling that had been painted over, indicating a violent attack had taken place.
Two days later, a lorry driver discovered a hand with a wedding ring in a suitcase along the M4 motorway.
Kirsty’s bones were broken in an act of “cruelty” so she could be crushed in the bag.
It looked like something out of a horror movie, she was in such a state. You couldn’t even recognize the beautiful girl she was
Mama Cathy
Grabham had also tried to cut his wife in half before stuffing her still warm body inside.
Police were able to determine that the garbage bags used to wrap Kirsty’s feet matched the ones the couple used at home.
Mum Cathy said: “Police told me a young woman’s body was found in a suitcase. I remember trying to get up and I would fall again
‘We walked into that morgue and I kept denying it. To see your child end up in such a morgue, beaten beyond recognition.
“I didn’t want it to be Kirsty, it didn’t look like Kirsty. To me it wasn’t Kirsty. It was like something out of a horror movie, she was such a state. You couldn’t even recognize the beautiful girl she was – her nose was broken, her jaw was broken.
“I kissed her on the forehead and on the right cheek – that was all I was allowed to do. I couldn’t even hold her hand – she was a piece of evidence.”
Grabham was charged with murder, but gave Kirsty’s family a full trial.
The killer claimed that intruders must have broken in while he was sleeping and killed his wife.
You stuffed her bleeding and still warm body into a suitcase like trash, hoping it wouldn’t be found for years.
Mr Justice Butterfield
But jurors saw through his lies and he was given a life sentence with a minimum of 19 years after pleading guilty to murder.
Mr Justice Butterfield told Grabham that his actions had been “cold and calculated” and without remorse.
“I looked for the slightest glimmer of remorse in your eyes throughout the entire trial, but I saw none,” he said.
“You have been convicted of murder – just a year after you promised to love and cherish your new bride, you assaulted and strangled her.
“You stuffed her bleeding and still warm body into a suitcase like trash, hoping it wouldn’t be found for years.”
How to get help
Women’s Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Contact charities for help, including Women’s Aid’s live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarize yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without saying anything, but calling “55” instead.
- Make sure you always have some money with you, including change for a phone booth or bus ticket.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try going to a lower-risk part of the house, such as where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where knives or other weapons are likely to be present. Avoid rooms where you could become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you could be locked in a closet or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid offers a live chat service – Available on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on weekends from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
You can also call the free 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
Although Grabham was eventually behind bars, Cathy’s heartbreak continued when her eldest daughter Hayley drank herself to death after struggling to cope with her loss.
Determined to share her horrific experiences to help others, she wrote a book about the double loss.
The brave mother has also helped other victims of domestic violence.
Speaking about Kirsty’s suffering she said: “A baby and one Nice weddingthat was all she needed, but unfortunately she never got it because of evil.
‘For the short time she was here soilshe really made an impact, a long-lasting one.”
- Catch ‘The suitcase murders at Quest Red on Saturday. Also available to stream on Discovery+
10
10
10
10
10
10