Wonderful Sarah brought so much joy to us, say her shattered family

THE heartbroken family of Sarah Everard paid tribute to her last night, describing her as a ‘shining example to us all’.

The parents of the 33-yearold marketing executive told of their devastation after their ‘wonderful daughter’ was allegedly snatched from the street by a stranger as she walked home a week ago on Wednesday.

Now the family face an agonising wait for the formal identification of human remains found in woodland near Ashford, Kent, on Wednesday.

Miss Everard’s father Jeremy, 67, a professor of electronics at the University of York, and her mother Susan, 63, travelled down to London to help police in their search soon after Miss Everard went missing on the night of March 3.

In a statement they said: ‘Our beautiful daughter Sarah was taken from us and we are appealing for any information that will help to solve this terrible crime.

‘Sarah was bright and beautiful – a wonderful daughter and sister. She was kind and thoughtful, caring and dependable. She always put others first and had the most amazing sense of humour.

‘She was strong and principled and a shining example to us all. We are very proud of her and she brought so much joy to our lives.

‘We would like to thank our friends and family for all their support during this awful time and we would especially like to thank Sarah’s friends who are working tirelessly to help.’

Steve Lewis, Miss Everard’s head teacher at Fulford School,

York, told The Times she was ‘popular and well-liked’ and a ‘lovely, bright, intelligent girl who shone within the school’.

She went on to achieve a 2:1 degree in geography at Durham University in 2008 and moved to London about 12 years ago to pursue her career in marketing.

She took a six-month break in 2013 to travel to South America, spending a month at the carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, before travelling to

Iguazu Falls and Buenos Aires, in Argentina.

She supported the Matthew Elvidge Trust, a mental health charity set up in memory of a student who took his own life in 2009.

Miss Everard had just started a new job and was in a relationship with Josh Lowth, 33, a marketing director.

She had made a 15-minute call to him as she walked home, ringing off shortly before police believe she was abducted in Poynders Road, in Clapham, south London.

The family’s statement last night also included an impassioned plea for information from the public.

It is hoped witnesses will come forward, which may help detectives piece together Miss Everard’s last movements.

Despite learning that the prime suspect in the case is a Metropolitan Police officer, the family expressed their faith in the investigation team.

‘We are so grateful to the police and would like to thank them for all they are doing,’ they said. ‘We are now pleading for additional help from the public. Please come forward and speak to the police if you have any information.

‘No piece of information is too insignificant.’

‘She was strong and principled’