Harrowing scenes as schoolboy is laid to rest

A TENSE silence was broken in a west Dublin graveyard yesterday when cries of sorrow went up as a the embalmed body of schoolboy Toyosi Shitta-bey was lowered into the ground.

It was an emotional moment as men and women of all ages and ethnic backgrounds cried and Muslim religious leaders prayed as the 15-year-old Nigerian boy’s body was laid to rest.

Earlier, mourners paid their final respects at Cunningham’s Funeral Home in Lucan as Toyosi was laid out in white silk in an open coffin. Family and religious leaders had washed his body, wrapped it in cloth and said prayers over his remains, according to Muslim custom, before classmates, friends and community leaders paid their respects.