Murder victim was father of 15-year-old girl tragically found dead in park

The man who was murdered in Lowestoft on Friday had tragically lost his 15-year-old daughter nine years ago. Gary Grant, 54, died in Sparrow's Nest Gardens at around 10.15pm on Friday. Police were called to the scene and found him unresponsive, and he was later pronounced dead. Police found Mr Grant, 54, unresponsive on Friday night and he was later pronounced dead (Image: Supplied) It has now emerged that Mr Grant is the father of Ellie Grant, who was found dead two-and-a-half miles away in Fen Park, Kirkley, on March 13, 2017. The teenager had been reported missing at 5.30am, and her disappearance was said to be out of character. The East Point Academy pupil had last been seen at 10.30pm the previous night when she had gone to her room. Police found her body just before 6am. It is believed she took her own life. Ellie Grant was found dead around half an hour after being reported missing (Image: Supplied) Tributes flooded in, as Fen Park was filled with flowers and hundreds of heartfelt messages were shared on social media. Mr Grant attended a special event in the park to commemorate his daughter's life just days later. "Thank you to everyone who has come along and to everyone who has helped organise everything here," he said to the crowd. "Ellie is always in our hearts." The death of Mr Grant's daughter had been mentioned in a court case featuring him as a defendant. A general view of Sparrow's Nest Park, where Mr Grant died (Image: Mick Howes) In 2022, he had been working on a Stena Europe ferry leaving Fishguard harbour in Wales when he wounded its assistant bosun with a knife. The attack happened on the week of what would have been Ellie's 21st birthday. Mr Grant had been upset by a comment the assistant bosun had made when he posted a picture of Ellie on Facebook. The court heard that when the captain arrived to try and calm the situation down, Mr Grant said his daughter would have been 21 that week, but she had killed herself when she was 15. Mr Grant was given a suspended prison sentence after admitting unlawful wounding. Floral tributes have been laid for Mr Grant (Image: Mick Howes) Amber Stebbings, 28, of Spashett Road in Lowestoft, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of Mr Grant's murder. She was taken to Great Yarmouth Police Investigation Centre for questioning and appeared at Great Magistrates' Court today. Accompanied by a security officer in the dock, Stebbings only spoke to confirm her name, date of birth and address. Amber Stebbings, 28, has been charged with the murder of Gary Grant (Image: Facebook) Stebbings was remanded into custody and will next appear in court tomorrow at Ipswich Crown Court. Suffolk police said this is being treated as an isolated incident and the parties involved are understood to have been known to each other.