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Tuesday, 3 September, 2002, 16:02 GMT 17:02 UK

Funerals held for Holly and Jessica

The funerals of murdered schoolgirls Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells have taken place.

The funerals were held separately following a memorial service for both 10-year-old girls at Ely Cathedral last Friday.

A service for Jessica, who was cremated, was held on Monday and her best friend Holly was buried on Tuesday.

Cambridgeshire Police said the families had requested that no further details about the funerals should be released.

A police spokeswoman said: "Both funerals were strictly private affairs."

Holly and Jessica, who both lived in Soham, vanished on Sunday 4 August.

Their bodies were discovered near an isolated track in Wangford, Suffolk, on 17 August.

Up to 2,000 people packed Ely Cathedral for the service of celebration and remembrance for the girls last Friday, two days before Jessica's 11th birthday.

Former Soham Village College caretaker Ian Huntley, 28, has been charged with the girls' murders and is being held at a high security hospital under the Mental Health Act.

His partner, Maxine Carr, 25, a former teaching assistant in Holly and Jessica's class, has been accused of attempting to pervert the course of justice.

School start

She is being held on remand in prison, although her lawyers have said they are looking for a safe house before making an application for her to be freed on bail.

Meanwhile staff at the two schools, which have been sealed off for the past two weeks during a police search, were preparing for the start of the new term.

The search is now coming to an end and staff are being allowed back into parts of the school in readiness for the start of term next Monday.

The forensic examination of the scene around where the bodies were found is expected to continue.


Related to this story:
In pictures: Remembering Holly and Jessica (30 Aug 02 | England) Holly and Jessica - tribute poems (30 Aug 02 | England) 'Milestone in shared journey of grief' (30 Aug 02 | England) Quiet reflection at Ely (30 Aug 02 | England) Sport falls silent for Holly and Jessica (24 Aug 02 | England)


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