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Funeral for fire mother and girls | |
(40 minutes later) | |
Hundreds of mourners gathered at the funeral of a mother and her four daughters who were killed when their house was deliberately set on fire. | |
Caneze Riaz, 39, and children Sayrah, 16, Sophia, 12, Alicia, 10, and Hannah, aged three, died in their beds at the house in Accrington, Lancashire. | Caneze Riaz, 39, and children Sayrah, 16, Sophia, 12, Alicia, 10, and Hannah, aged three, died in their beds at the house in Accrington, Lancashire. |
Police believe the blaze was started by the girls' father Mohammed who died two days after being pulled from the blaze. | Police believe the blaze was started by the girls' father Mohammed who died two days after being pulled from the blaze. |
A private service took place at Raza Jamia Mosque on Grimshaw Street. | |
The five coffins were driven to the mosque under police escort, and Caneze was taken in first followed by her children. | |
The caskets were draped in black and green cloth embellished with pink and gold Arabic decoration. | |
Mohammed Riaz's body will be sent back to Pakistan for burial | |
A public funeral service was held at Accrington Cemetery later in the afternoon. | |
Roads around the cemetery on Burnley Road were closed off to accommodate the mourners. | |
Detectives believe Mohammed Riaz, 49, locked all the doors in the house before starting several fires all over the house using accelerants. | Detectives believe Mohammed Riaz, 49, locked all the doors in the house before starting several fires all over the house using accelerants. |
He was named as the only suspect in the murder investigation but died in hospital before detectives could question him. | He was named as the only suspect in the murder investigation but died in hospital before detectives could question him. |
His wife and daughters were all asleep in bed and were overcome by the smoke, dying in their beds in the blaze on 1 November. | His wife and daughters were all asleep in bed and were overcome by the smoke, dying in their beds in the blaze on 1 November. |
'Marriage problems' | |
The couple's only son, Adam, 17, escaped the tragedy because he is in The Christie Hospital, Manchester, battling leukaemia. | The couple's only son, Adam, 17, escaped the tragedy because he is in The Christie Hospital, Manchester, battling leukaemia. |
His mother had visited him only hours before her death. | |
He joined his uncle Barry Khanan, Caneze's brother, for the burial at the cemetery. | |
Hundreds of mourners also surrounded the burial plot high on a hillside above the town. | |
Lancashire Police are investigating the possibility that Mr and Mrs Riaz were having marriage problems. | Lancashire Police are investigating the possibility that Mr and Mrs Riaz were having marriage problems. |
Mrs Riaz was described as a bubbly and popular "pillar of the community" and had been extremely active in the local area. | Mrs Riaz was described as a bubbly and popular "pillar of the community" and had been extremely active in the local area. |
The body of Mr Riaz will be returned to his native Pakistan for burial after it is released. | |
An inquest into all six deaths has been opened and adjourned until February. | An inquest into all six deaths has been opened and adjourned until February. |