A woman has been given a boost in her battle to bring home the bodies of her dead daughter and grand-daughter for burial after they were murdered in America.

American police are backing attempts by a Cottingley woman to bring home the bodies of her murdered relatives.

Jacqui Melvin, 50, whose daughter Melanie Edwards, 33, and her two-year-old daughter, Carli Fay, were gunned down by her estranged husband Carlton, is determined that they should be buried together.

He shot them near a protection home after he had returned Carli and nine days later turned the gun on himself when confronted by police on San Francisco's Golden Gate bridge.

Russ Welkych, a spokesman for Seattle Police, said he had spoken to Carlton's family and could not foresee any problems: "The last I heard, the medical examiners' office were going to release the bodies to the local funeral home and they would be dispatched to England.

"It's my understanding the mother of Carlton Edwards, who is an English citizen, wants Carli back there so they will be going back."

Mrs Melvin said: "The US police are supporting our attempt to bring them back together. At the moment the bodies are still stuck in a morgue.

"We got a phone call at midnight recently from Amy Arton, a lawyer for the police in Seattle, saying that under American law Carlton's father as next of kin would have a big say in what would happen to the bodies.

"I am assuming that his ex-wife who lives in London believes that they should be buried together. I don't know the family but she doted on the child and our lawyers have sent a very strong letter saying that they should come back because of the way they died.

"Once I know that they can come back it will be a weight off our minds and we can sit back and make proper arrangements. I will fight tooth and nail to get them back to Yorkshire.

"And because of the exceptional circumstances we're hoping to expedite the process whereby we apply for financial aid to help pay for the £3,500 cost of returning them."

She added that Melanie's and Carli's clothes were to be given to charity as well as the effects from the protection home where she lived before the murder. The couple's house in Seattle is to go on sale on Monday.

Mrs Melvin said: "It's a lovely house though they weren't in it long. They only moved in in June."

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