Woman's bid to bring killed sister's body 'home'

The family of a pregnant mother-of-two who was stabbed to death in a London flat say they may have to take out a loan to bury her in her beloved home town.

Alana Odysseos, 32, died at an address in Walthamstow on 22 July.

She grew up in Newmarket, Suffolk, and had always wanted to be buried there, her sister Jasmine Yates said, but the £6,000 cost was proving prohibitive.

Ms Yates, from Melbourn in Cambridgeshire, said: "She was the kind of person who'd help anybody and it would mean the world to fulfil her wish."

Shaine March, 45, from Surrey Quays in south-east London, has been charged with Ms Odysseos' murder and will enter a plea at the Old Bailey in October.

Ms Yates, 26, said she used to speak to her sister every day.

"She'd call me 10 times a day sometimes and it'd drive me mad because I was trying to do something, but I'd give anything for the phone to ring now," she said.

"I miss her so much."

They last spoke the day before the attack.

"She was four weeks' pregnant with her third child and she was so excited. We were discussing baby names," Ms Yates said.

She thought at first that news of her sister's death was a hoax.

"I had to break the news to my mum and it was the hardest thing I've ever had to do," she said.

"I've never heard my mum scream like that. It was devastating. No-one should have to lose a child."

A family liaison officer from the Metropolitan Police contacted the family once Ms Odysseos' identity had been confirmed.

Ms Odysseos had two daughters, aged 12 and two, and was four weeks' pregnant with her third child at the time of her death.

Her sister said: "She was a wonderful mother and she was the biggest support to me when I became a young mum myself.

"She was kind. If you were in a queue for something and didn't have enough money, she'd be scratching around in her purse to help you even though she had very little herself."

Ms Yates said their childhood in Newmarket was "really happy" and "noisy with four girls".

"We had a lovely house and big garden which we all played in," she said.

"Alana and I liked to go fishing with Dad, and we'd put on pantomimes for our parents. I was always the princess and Alana like to be the wicked witch type.

"I remember she dyed her hair bright red once and I told her she looked like Ronald McDonald - that's the type of relationship we had. She was a joker but so supportive."

The family is now fundraising to bury Ms Odysseos in Newmarket.

"She always said she wanted to be buried with our nan, Patricia," Ms Yates said.

"At first we were facing double fees because Alana hadn't lived there for the last five years. The extra charge has been waived now but it'll still cost us more than £6,000 to fulfil her wish and we don't have that.

"We'd like to get her a pink coffin, too. It was her favourite colour.

"If we can't raise the money we'll have to try to take out a loan. It'd mean the world to be able to do what she wanted."

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The nature of her sister's death has made Ms Yates "feel as though it's a really scary world now and there's nowhere that's safe".

"I don't want to go out anymore," she said.

"It just doesn't feel right living a life without Alana in it."

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