Hundreds of mourners turned out Wednesday to pay their final respects to two young girls killed in Laval.
About 500 people attended the funeral at Our Lady of Divine Love church, but the parents of the girls, Sabrina De Vito, 8, and Amanda De Vito, 9 were not among them.
That's because their mother, Adele Sorella has been arrested and charged with first degree murder in their deaths. She is currently undergoing psychiatric testing because it was not clear that she understood the charges against her.
Their father, Giuseppe De Vito, is an alleged member of the mafia who has been in hiding since 2006 when Ontario and Quebec collaborated on a mob bust. There is a warrant out for his arrest on drug trafficking and other charges.
The procession was led by the grandparents of the two girls, who cried as they held doves representing the two young victims. A dozen or so doves were released as part of the funeral.
The girls' school was across from the church, and it was closed for the day. A number of staff and students attended the service.
"When you lose two kids at a young age it's a big loss but again, if I have to think about Sabrina and Amanda, the only thing I can think about is their smile and again, their willingness to help others. This is really what they were all about," said Serge-Edouard Jeanniton, the school's principal.
