Milton Keynes pays its respects to Leah Croucher
Crowds are expected to line up the cortege route to say a final goodbye
Leah Croucher's funeral will take place on Friday (3/3), exactly 4 years and 16 days after she disappeared on her morning walk to work in Milton Keynes.
The 19-year-old's remains were found last October, along with her belongings, inside a vacant house in Furzton, only about a mile away from her home in Emerson Valley.
Leah’s funeral will be a private family service, but a cortege will pass through Emerson Valley, Furzton, Shenley Brook End, Shenley Church End and Grange Farm for members of the public to pay their respects.
The lead undertaker who will walk in front of a horse-drawn hearse and two vehicles along the entire route of approximately 3.5 miles.
The cortege will leave White Horse Drive at 10.50am; turning right into Taunton Deane, then left into Fulmer Street. Then, it will turn right into Dansteed Way, and turn right into Crownhill Crematorium.
Thames Valley Police have issued a map of the funeral route.
The cortege is expected to arrive at Crownhill Crematorium at 12pm, with a private funeral service expected to start at 12.15pm and finish at approximately 1pm.
Leah Croucher's family has invited the community to the cortege, saying they've found "comfort" in their support during the "long" three years and eight months Leah was classed as a missing person.
In a statement released last month, the family added:
"We cannot thank you all enough for this support during those years, as well as the past four and a half months since Leah was found.
“The community outpouring displayed at the address in Furzton, as well as the countless messages of support displayed on a tree nearby, which have been compiled into a book by the local church on the estate has taken our breath away.
“As a family, this has brought us a large amount of comfort.
“The time has come to finally lay our beautiful Leah to rest."
A private service will be held at Crownhill Crematorium for Leah's family and friends, and the family has asked for their wishes for privacy to be respected.
“This will be a service for Leah’s family and friends, and there is also a limit to the amount of guests we can have due to space and Health & Safety regulations.
“However, we would like to offer the opportunity to those of you who wish to pay your respects and say your very own private ‘goodbye’ to Leah as she goes on her final journey to the crematorium."
The mysterious disappearance of 19-year-old Leah prompted a large-scale missing persons investigation, which later become a murder investigation following the discovery of her remains at a house in Loxbeare Drive, Furzton.
In October, the prime suspect in her murder was named by Thames Valley Police as Neil Maxwell, who took his own life in April 2019.
In a press conference at the time, police said Maxwell was the only person with keys to the house, while the owners were away.