Hundreds gather for funeral in extraordinary tribute to three young men killed in car crash
HUNDREDS gathered in a moving tribute at the funeral of three young men who died in a horrific car crash in Manchester.
Mourners flooded the grounds of Victoria Park Mosque and the Muslim Heritage Centre in Whalley Range, Manchester, as friends and families arrived en masse to pay their respects.
Hamzaa Iqbal, Munib Afzal Karim and Hamza Gujjar were tragically killed when the Audi S5 they were driving crashed in Whalley Range in the early hours of the morning.
Hamzaa, 24, and Hamza, 20 were pronounced dead at the scene.
Their friend Munib, 21, was seriously injured in the crash and died in hospital the following day.
The men had been travelling back home after Munib’s sister’s wedding, the Manchester Evening News reports.
Their devastated families and friends today paid respects to the victims, as mourners as far away as Scotland and the south east completed the long journey to pay tribute to their friends.
Due to the vast number of people, the funeral had to be held at two sites.
Women attended the Islamic prayer at the mosque, while the men attended a separate ceremony at the heritage centre.
Tributes have also poured in on social media and friends are holding vigils at the crash site to remember the three tragic men.
Police previously said the hired car they were travelling in was going at “high speed.”
It crashed into a signpost and two parked cars close to Whalley Range High School for Girls at around 3.15am on Wednesday April 27.
After the accident, Hamzaa’s brothers pleaded with young drivers to slow down.
Usman Iqbal said: “The loss that we’ve felt and the pain that we’re feeling I can’t explain tit to anybody, but my request would be to all the youngsters be careful not to be so reckless because, hand on heart, I don’t think anybody would want to feel the pain that we’re going through right now.”
Awais Iqbal added: “We’ve been receiving so much love, not just from the media, but people that I never imagined to be paying their condolences and paying their respects.”
A 17-year-old was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and has been bailed until June 11.
A 19-year-old was also arrested on suspicion of the same offence but has since been released.
Authorities are still appealing for witnesses to the accident and anyone with further information should call police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.