- Sophie was found dead in her Emerald Lakes home by her father
- Mother charged with murder
- Heartbroken locals have paid tribute
The Gold Coast Suns have paid tribute to schoolgirl Sophia Wang after the 10-year-old girl was found dead at her Emerald Lakes home on Thursday.
The capacity crowd at People First Stadium held a minute’s silence for Wang ahead of the crucial match between the Suns and the Melbourne Demons, with a place in the AFL finals at stake.
The Suns players also wore black armbands during the game and shared a photo on social media with the caption “For Sophie.”
This came after hundreds of mourners bowed their heads on Friday to remember the 10-year-old at a candlelight vigil in the Gold Coast at dusk.
The crowd at the AFL match between Gold Coast Suns and Melbourne Demons paid tribute to Sophie Wang before their match at People First Stadium
The usually quiet community of Emerald Lakes was shocked after Sophie was found dead in her home Tuesday night, allegedly murdered by her mother.
Students from Sophie’s school, Emmanuel College, led a somber performance of the song during an hour-long candlelight vigil on Friday as locals tried to come to terms with the tragedy.
Tamara Christensen, a local resident, told AAP the neighbourhood was her “happy place”.
However, she said the community has been in turmoil since Sophie’s father Yun Wang found his daughter’s body in their home.
Sophie was pronounced dead at the “extremely confronting” crime scene and her mother Yingying Xu, 46, was later charged with her murder.
“I was devastated, I felt sick,” Christensen said of her reaction to the news.
‘The last few days it just felt sad and creepy.
“How could this happen? I just felt like I had to come here and pay my respects.”
The 10-year-old schoolgirl was found dead by her father in her Emerald Lakes home on Thursday
Emerald Lakes residents console each other during a vigil for Sophie Wang held Friday
Thousands of people turned out for a candlelight vigil for Sophie Wang and stayed long after the vigil ended
During the vigil, a photo of Sophie was placed by a fountain and people took turns placing candles by the photo.
A minute’s silence was held before the attendees were addressed by the principal of Sophie’s school.
“This is a testament to the strength of our community,” said Dan Brown.
“Thank you all for being here to cherish Sophie.”
Amazing Grace was followed by a prayer at the gathering, which was also attended by local state MP Meaghan Scanlon, Queensland Police and Gold Coast Suns AFL players.
The vigil was held hours after an emotional service at Emmanuel College, amid a public display of grief for the fifth-grader.