A three-year-old girl who was stabbed to death by her mother has been farewelled by loved ones just two days before her fourth birthday.
Sophia Rose was killed by her mother, Lauren Ingrid Flanigan, on the front lawn of their home in Moore Park Beach, in Queensland, on May 26.
Her younger siblings, aged one and two, were inside the home at the time.
Flanigan, 32, was charged with her daughter’s murder but died after being found unresponsive inside her Brisbane jail cell. She never entered a plea.
Sophia’s funeral service was held in Victoria on Saturday, where her father Jai Ruane, 39, and her siblings have since relocated.
‘Instead of celebrating Sophia’s fourth birthday, we’re having a funeral,’ Mr Ruane told the Courier Mail.
‘A funeral that shouldn’t be happening, as there is supposed to be systems in place to protect children but that clearly failed.’
He said Sophia’s birthdays were always special occasions for the family.
Her first birthday involved a lavish cake, her second was celebrated twice, and her third was crowned with a fairy-themed party.
‘Now, this weekend’s going to be a big event, but it’s not a birthday,’ he said.
Mr Ruane last saw his daughter two weeks before she died. His job as a fly-in-fly-out miner meant that his trips home to his family wee intermittent.
He recalled holding her hand at their local zoo and a Hungry Jack’s lunch.
It was an otherwise ordinary day, he said, but now one he will never forget.
Mr Ruane still has a drawing the three-year-old made for him that day.
Attendees at Sophia’s funeral were asked to wear a ‘touch of pink’ in honour of the little girl’s favourite colour.
Mr Ruane remembered his first-born as a real ‘girly-girl’ with a ‘strong character’ and a curious, social nature.
The grieving dad has since relocated to Victoria with his two other children because of the ‘memories’ attached to the Queensland home.
They now live closer to Mr Ruane’s siblings and their children.
Queensland Corrective Services said in June it would review how Flanigan died despite being assessed as high-risk and requiring close monitoring.
It’s understood she had been placed in a specialised unit for high-risk prisoners known as the Crisis Support Unit at Brisbane Women’s Correctional Centre.
Asked about Ms Flanigan’s death, a spokesperson for Queensland Police told Daily Mail a report would be prepared for the coroner.
‘Due to this no further comment can be made at this time,’ they said.
In September last year, Flanigan shared pictures of Sophia in a pink princess dress on Instagram with the caption ‘my divine babies’.