Joanna Yeates' friend: 'Dreams we shared are dashed but not forgotten'
Emma Brooks, one of the best friends of murdered landscape architect Joanna Yeates, has said she hopes police will find her killer soon so her friends and family can remember the good times they had with her.
Joanna Yeates and Emma Brooks
They could make each other laugh with just one word and dreamt of growing "old and fabulous" together.
But one of Joanna Yeates' best friends, Emma Brooks, described how their dreams had been "dashed" but would never be forgotten.
Speaking publicly for the first time, Ms Brooks, 25, said she hoped Ms Yeates's killer would be found soon so that her friends and family "can focus on the good".
She spoke as Miss Yeates' parents said they had endured a "month of nothingness" and were "in limbo" as they wait for their daughter's body to be returned to them.
Miss Yeates was reported missing by her boyfriend Greg Reardon on December 19.
Walkers discovered her snow-covered body on a grass verge in Longwood Lane, Failand, north Somerset, on Christmas morning. She had been strangled.
Miss Brooks, from north London, who studied landscape design and horticulture with Miss Yeates at Writtle College, in Essex, told The Sunday Telegraph: "We could make each other laugh with just one word. It didn't matter how long we had seen each other, it was always the same.
"Jo was a true friend and I can only hope they find her killer soon so we can focus on the good. I'll always miss her. The dreams we shared of growing old and fabulous together are dashed but not forgotten."
Speaking from their home in Romsey, Hampshire, David and Teresa Yeates said they are "in limbo" until Joanna's body is released by police.
"We are just waiting for Jo's body to be released. We are doing everything we can regarding the end of things, just waiting for her to come back. We're in limbo until that happens. It's nothing to do with the police. They have no control over it.
"We are just having to do all the other things we can. It hasn't been a month for us. It's been just one long period of time ... of nothingness. We can't remember what happened on different days. Days have no meaning for us. Life has just stopped."
The couple added that they are "still optimistic" about the police investigation and believe their daughter's killer will still be caught.
"We are still optimistic. Of course we are. You have to be. The police have their process to follow and we just help wherever we can.
"That's what we expected. They're concentrating on catching the person and we are just concentrating on looking after Joanna. We get involved when the police want us to get involved and that's the way it's got to be."
Their comments come after detectives hunting Miss Yeates' killer began searching a village close to where her body was dumped
Officers have spent two days scouring roadside verges in Long Ashton – around half a mile from Longwood Lane, where Ms Yeates's remains were discovered on Christmas Day.
It is believed the searches were ordered as part of a renewed effort to trace a grey ski sock missing from Miss Yeates, 25, when she was found.
Detectives believe finding the sock could provide the vital breakthrough in catching the killer. Officers have been carrying out detailed searches of the grass verges in nearby Providence Lane in case the killer discarded the sock as he fled the scene.
The rural area is surrounded by woods and is also close to a golf course.
A police spokesman said the searches were part of "routine inquiries".
Miss Brooks, from north London, who studied landscape design and horticulture with Miss Yeates at Writtle College, in Essex, told The Sunday Telegraph: "We could make each other laugh with just one word. It didn't matter how long we had seen each other, it was always the same.
"Jo was a true friend and I can only hope they find her killer soon so we can focus on the good. I'll always miss her. The dreams we shared of growing old and fabulous together are dashed but not forgotten."
Speaking from their home in Romsey, Hampshire, David and Teresa Yeates said they are "in limbo" until Joanna's body is released by police.
"We are just waiting for Jo's body to be released. We are doing everything we can regarding the end of things, just waiting for her to come back. We're in limbo until that happens. It's nothing to do with the police. They have no control over it.
"We are just having to do all the other things we can. It hasn't been a month for us. It's been just one long period of time ... of nothingness. We can't remember what happened on different days. Days have no meaning for us. Life has just stopped."
The couple added that they are "still optimistic" about the police investigation and believe their daughter's killer will still be caught.
"We are still optimistic. Of course we are. You have to be. The police have their process to follow and we just help wherever we can.
"That's what we expected. They're concentrating on catching the person and we are just concentrating on looking after Joanna. We get involved when the police want us to get involved and that's the way it's got to be."
Their comments come after detectives hunting Miss Yeates' killer began searching a village close to where her body was dumped
Officers have spent two days scouring roadside verges in Long Ashton – around half a mile from Longwood Lane, where Ms Yeates's remains were discovered on Christmas Day.
It is believed the searches were ordered as part of a renewed effort to trace a grey ski sock missing from Miss Yeates, 25, when she was found.
Detectives believe finding the sock could provide the vital breakthrough in catching the killer. Officers have been carrying out detailed searches of the grass verges in nearby Providence Lane in case the killer discarded the sock as he fled the scene.
The rural area is surrounded by woods and is also close to a golf course.
A police spokesman said the searches were part of "routine inquiries".
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8261704/Joanna-Yeates-friend-Dreams-we-shared-are-dashed-but-not-forgotten.html
