Alice Gross funeral: Town centre falls silent to remember murdered schoolgirl

 A town centre fell silent today for the funeral cortege of murdered teenager Alice Gross.
Traffic stopped and locals came out to pay their respects in Hanwell, west London, as the hearse passed through with a police escort.
Yellow ribbons - once a symbol of hope that Alice would be found alive - festooned trees, railings and traffic signs along the route.
The 14-year-old's coffin was colourfully decorated with patterns and topped with flowers.
Alice's family followed in black cars as the funeral procession passed a short distance from the River Brent, where her body was found last month following a huge police search.
Dozens of bunches of mainly yellow flowers, candles and messages of tribute have been left around a clock tower in the centre of Hanwell, which has become a focus of the community's grief.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Locals line the yellow ribbon lined streets to pay respects as the funeral cortege of Alice Gross passes in Hanwell, London

Locals lit small candles arranged to spell out "We love you Alice" and watered flowers ahead of the funeral.
One note left at the clock tower said: "You will always be in our hearts."
Marion McCarthy, 39, a nurse from nearby Ealing, said the effect on the community had been "horrendous".
She said: "It has brought a sense of shock. We have been united. I'm a mother of a girl the same age (as Alice). It's every parent's worst scenario ever."
Another man, who did not want to be named, said there had been a sense of solidarity when residents joined attempts to find Alice.
He added: "It's just really sad."
Alice went missing on August 28, triggering Scotland Yard's largest search operation since the aftermath of the July 7 terror attacks.
Specialists search teams discovered her remains hidden under logs on the bed of the River Brent in west London more than a month later on September 30.

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An inquest into tragic Alice Gross's death has been opened and adjourned

The prime suspect in her murder, convicted killer Arnis Zalkalns, was found hanged in nearby Boston Manor Park on October 4, four weeks after he was reported missing.
Alice's disappearance sparked an outpouring of support in and around Hanwell, where she lived with her parents, Rosalind Hodgkiss and Jose Gross, and elder sister Nina.
Yellow ribbons and bows were spread around the area with "missing" posters as the community lived in hope that the Brentside High School pupil would be found.
Alice was last seen on CCTV walking along the towpath beside the Grand Union Canal near her home on the afternoon of August 28.
It emerged three weeks later that Zalkalns, who served seven years in prison in his native Latvia for bludgeoning and stabbing his wife Rudite to death, had been cycling behind her.
Police have come under fire for delays in identifying Zalkalns as a suspect. He vanished on September 3 and was reported missing by his family two days later.
The general labourer, who worked at a building site in Isleworth, west London, is believed to have come to the UK in 2007, but authorities here are thought to have had no record of his murder conviction.
A review of the handling of the case is being carried out by Scotland Yard.
Inquests into both their deaths have been opened and adjourned, while further tests are being conducted to establish the cause of Alice's death.