The parents of a Royal Navy sailor who vanished without trace in Gibraltar 40 years ago have expressed relief after a serial killer they believe murdered their son was convicted of multiple sexual offences.
Simon Parkes was 18 when he disappeared during the final leg of a worldwide deployment on HMS Illustrious in 1986. His body has never been found. His parents, Margaret and David, are convinced he was killed by former petty officer Allan Grimson, who was serving on the same ship.
Conviction for sexual offences
Grimson, 66, was found guilty at Winchester Crown Court of 13 sex offences committed between 1994 and 1999 against three men and a child. He will be sentenced on November 9. The conviction comes after the parole board turned down his bid for freedom last year, when he became eligible for parole on the life sentence he received for murdering sailor Nicholas Wright, 18, and barman Sion Jenkins, 20, in 2001.
Margaret Parkes, now 80 and living in Bristol, said: 'He should stay behind bars which is where he belongs. I think justice has been done after all this time for those victims. It was a shame it has not been done before but now it has all come out hopefully it means he will stay in prison.'
Hope for inquest into Simon's death
Grimson's conviction has opened the path for an inquest into Simon's death, offering the prospect of answers the family has sought for almost 40 years. Hampshire Police spent years investigating the disappearance, deploying specialist teams to Gibraltar in 2019 and carrying out further searches in 2023 and 2024. The service announced last year that it was closing its criminal investigation after exhaustive inquiries failed to establish what had happened.
Margaret said: 'We now just want it to be recognised formally that Simon was unlawfully killed. You have got to remember that as far as the Navy is concerned he has gone AWOL.' The family has always disputed that he went AWOL, pointing to letters he sent describing the 'trip of a lifetime' and arrangements to meet his family in Portsmouth.
'Frankenstein' killer's history
Grimson, dubbed 'Frankenstein', was branded 'a serial killer in nature if not by number' by a judge when he was jailed for life in 2001. During police interviews he chillingly described killing as 'better than sex' and 'better than an orgasm'. He has continued to deny any involvement in Simon's disappearance, but the family are sure he was responsible.
Margaret added: 'Our life sentence goes on. All I can say is Grimson will be a danger to society if he comes out – a leopard never changes his spots as they say – that is it really.'
