Karlie Pearce-Stevenson and Khandalyce Pearce farewelled in funeral at Alice Springs

SHARING a coffin adorned with a crown of flowers, mother-and-daughter murder victims Karlie Pearce-Stevenson and Khandalyce Pearce have been farewelled in Alice Springs.

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SHARING a coffin adorned with a crown of flowers, mother-and-daughter murder victims Karlie Pearce-Stevenson and Khandalyce Pearce were farewelled in Alice Springs this morning.

Mourners dressed in blue and pink filed through the doors of the Desert Life Church to attend the funeral of the “two very special people who have been taken from us”.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, the pair were laid to rest in a private burial.

South Australia Victims’ Rights Commissioner Michael O’Connell released a statement on behalf of the family, saying “many throughout Australia pray that mother and daughter will now rest forever in the arms of the angels”.

“Memories of a mother and daughter remain strong and enduring in so many hearts, although grief at their passing is raw and at times overwhelming,” Mr O’Connell said.

He said Ms Pearce-Stevenson, whose skeletal remains were discovered in the Belanglo State Forest in NSW in 2008, would be remembered as “cheeky, kind, loyal and a young woman who was always there to support family”.

Her young daughter “Khandles”, whose remains were discovered in a suitcase on the side of a South Australian highway this year, was described as “always there front and centre, as right there among the action as any two-year-old could be”.

The joint casket of Khandalyce Pearce and Karlie Pearce-Stevenson is walked to the hearse prior to their funeral.

The media was invited to view Karlie and Khandalyce’s single casket.

Funeral celebrant Meredith Campbell spoke of the hardships faced by the pair’s closest friends and family since the revelation of their murders in October this year.

“These dark and unforgiving years will never be forgotten,” Ms Campbell said.

The funeral marked the end of a long journey for the pair, after the remains of Khandlayce were transported from Adelaide to be repatriated with her mother in their former hometown late last month.

Until October, the fate of the pair had been unknown.

It wasn’t until police received an anonymous call to CrimeStoppers which suggested the two separately found victims could be linked, a grim fact substantiated by DNA testing.

Ms Pearce-Stevenson’s aunt Sharon Harris said earlier in December that although the funeral would bring a level of closure, the family would not be satisfied until the mystery of their murders was solved.

“As far as the journey being over, no. It’s not over is it? They didn’t die of natural causes,” Ms Harris said.

Convicted sex offender Daniel Holdom has been charged with the murder of Ms Pearce-Stevenson, but is yet to plead.

Nobody has yet been charged over the death of Khandalyce.

Originally published as Karlie Pearce-Stevenson and Khandalyce Pearce farewelled in funeral at Alice Springs