A thousand mourners gathered for the funeral of a schoolgirl believed to have been abducted and killed by her neighbour.
Police confirmed they'd found the body of schoolgirl Faye Marie Swetlik in woodland three days after she went missing from the Churchill Heights neighbourhood of South Carolina, US, on February 10.
Just moments later, authorities then found the body of her neighbour, 30-year-old Coty Scott Taylor, at his home and the two deaths were linked.
Taylor allegedly abducted the schoolgirl, strangled her to death hours later then killed himself.
Last night, grieving loved ones gathered for a poignant service where photos of the little girl were projected on a screen.
A heartbreaking eulogy written by Faye's mum Selena Collins, read out at the memorial, asked that people honour her daughter's memory through love, 'the most important magic', USA Today reports.
It asked people "to be a little bit more kind, to compliment a stranger, to dance in the rain, to stop and smell the flowers, to show just a little more bit love to everyone you meet."
The eulogy added: "One look in her bright blue eyes and the world was OK again."
"She loved everything and everyone," the eulogy said. "She wanted everyone to be as happy as she was."
In honour of Faye, family members encouraged people to wear pink and purple at the memorial in Trinity Baptist Church’s Worship Center, Cayce, Live 5 news reports.
Faye tragically died of asphyxiation hours after she was abducted in Cayce, Lexington County, results of an autopsy found.
Authorities believe Faye was not killed in the location where she was found, and that her body was moved to the woods.
The suspect was later found in his residence which was about 150ft from Faye's home.
Police earlier confirmed they had spoken to Taylor, among other neighbours, as part of their investigation after Faye went missing.
His interview did not alert authorities to suspect he was involved at the time.
But after Faye's body was found, a neighbour phoned 911 to report an injured man in the area.
The man was found dead and later identified as Taylor.
"Evidence leads us to believe that the deceased abducted and killed six-year-old Faye Marie Swetlik," Cayce Director of Public Safety Byron Snellgrove told CNN.
