Woman found in shallow grave laid to rest

A funeral was held Monday for a young woman whose remains were found in a shallow grave in a field in England eight years after she disappeared. Becky Godden-Edwards of Swindon was 21 when she vanished. Her body was discovered in March during the investigation into the disappearance of another young Swindon woman, Sian O'Callaghan, 22. More than 300 mourners packed Christ Church in Swindon, the Swindon Advertiser reported. Most wore something pink, Becky's favorite color. Karen Edwards followed her daughter's white wicker coffin down the aisle of the church, crying. Chris Halliwell, 47, a Swindon taxi driver, has been charged with the murder of Godden-Edwards and O'Callaghan. O'Callaghan's body was found in Oxfordshire buried near the Uffington White Horse, a prehistoric hill figure, while Godden-Edwards was buried in a field in the Cotswolds. Godden-Edwards' remains were cremated at a private service following the funeral, the BBC reported. "All the time she's been missing, the family never gave up hope," Margaret Williams, a lay minister, told mourners at the funeral. "So this, in a way, is their way of welcoming her home."