04-22-2011, 03:01 PM
ABC
On Good Friday, people visited the front of the home she lived at in Mt Druitt, placing Easter bunnies, stuffed toys and other items along the front fence after hearing that skeletal remains were found in bushland around nearby Shalvey.
Earlier in the day police arrested Kiesha's mother Kristi Anne Abrahams and step-father Robert Terry Smith, and charged them with murder.
They reported she had been kidnapped from their home last August, but police found no trace of an intruder.
They now allege the pair killed Kiesha sometime between July 20 and 27 last year and reported her missing days later.
Abrahams and Smith parents did not appear by video link in court, with their lawyer saying they were too distressed. They have been refused bail and will face court next Friday.
The remains are yet to be formally identified and until then Kiesha's biological father Chris Weippeart has declined to comment.
By 5.30pm (AEDT), a few hundred people gathered - many of them mums with children - and lit candles. The mood was sombre and a number of people cried during the event.
A group of about 10 people wore purple t-shirts with a motif of Kiesha's photo on the front.
One of them said a few words about Kiesha followed by a number of children who read aloud poems.
Kiesha's uncle Jason Smith spoke at the vigil and thanked the community for their support
He says the day's events have brought closure to the family.
"Today's meant to be Good Friday. In a sense, to us, it has become Good Friday because we now have closure," he said.
"We're all here to say farewell and thank you very much. As a family we'd like to thank you. As a community we've all come together. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts."
Others gathered expressed rage and relief at the arrests.
"I'm hurting, I'm angry and I just want to cry. You know, at the end of the day, justice is going to come upon [those responsible]," said one woman.
The remains were uncovered at about 8.00am (AEST) "at a number of locations" on land off Stoney Creek Road.
"The remains, which have yet to be positively identified, will be taken to Glebe Morgue for forensic examination," police said in a statement.
"A post mortem will also be conducted to establish the cause of death."
But the search of the bushland is continuing and police say it may go into the night.
"Suffice to say we will remain out there until we find what we're looking for," said Detective Inspector Russell Oxford from the State Crime Commander Homicide Squad.
Detective Inspector Oxford says it has been an arduous nine-month investigation and there was intense interest in the case.
"It was simply the case that we never wanted to give up on this matter," he said.
"The community outrage and the community of support was something I'll probably never see in a long time."
Earlier he said community anger had been growing after the arrests.
"The community is very concerned. We had a very young girl that disappeared and it really tore at the heart strings of a lot people," he said.
"The public outpouring of emotion started this morning and no doubt it will continue."
parents, crying lying bastards.
![[Image: kiesha-abrahams-family.jpg]](http://aussiecriminals.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/kiesha-abrahams-family.jpg)
On Good Friday, people visited the front of the home she lived at in Mt Druitt, placing Easter bunnies, stuffed toys and other items along the front fence after hearing that skeletal remains were found in bushland around nearby Shalvey.
Earlier in the day police arrested Kiesha's mother Kristi Anne Abrahams and step-father Robert Terry Smith, and charged them with murder.
They reported she had been kidnapped from their home last August, but police found no trace of an intruder.
They now allege the pair killed Kiesha sometime between July 20 and 27 last year and reported her missing days later.
Abrahams and Smith parents did not appear by video link in court, with their lawyer saying they were too distressed. They have been refused bail and will face court next Friday.
The remains are yet to be formally identified and until then Kiesha's biological father Chris Weippeart has declined to comment.
By 5.30pm (AEDT), a few hundred people gathered - many of them mums with children - and lit candles. The mood was sombre and a number of people cried during the event.
A group of about 10 people wore purple t-shirts with a motif of Kiesha's photo on the front.
One of them said a few words about Kiesha followed by a number of children who read aloud poems.
Kiesha's uncle Jason Smith spoke at the vigil and thanked the community for their support
He says the day's events have brought closure to the family.
"Today's meant to be Good Friday. In a sense, to us, it has become Good Friday because we now have closure," he said.
"We're all here to say farewell and thank you very much. As a family we'd like to thank you. As a community we've all come together. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts."
Others gathered expressed rage and relief at the arrests.
"I'm hurting, I'm angry and I just want to cry. You know, at the end of the day, justice is going to come upon [those responsible]," said one woman.
The remains were uncovered at about 8.00am (AEST) "at a number of locations" on land off Stoney Creek Road.
"The remains, which have yet to be positively identified, will be taken to Glebe Morgue for forensic examination," police said in a statement.
"A post mortem will also be conducted to establish the cause of death."
But the search of the bushland is continuing and police say it may go into the night.
"Suffice to say we will remain out there until we find what we're looking for," said Detective Inspector Russell Oxford from the State Crime Commander Homicide Squad.
Detective Inspector Oxford says it has been an arduous nine-month investigation and there was intense interest in the case.
"It was simply the case that we never wanted to give up on this matter," he said.
"The community outrage and the community of support was something I'll probably never see in a long time."
Earlier he said community anger had been growing after the arrests.
"The community is very concerned. We had a very young girl that disappeared and it really tore at the heart strings of a lot people," he said.
"The public outpouring of emotion started this morning and no doubt it will continue."
parents, crying lying bastards.