The coroner said Sarah Everard's family can now plan her funeral
An inquest into the death of 33-year-old Sarah Everard has opened, with her family appearing in court virtually to listen to the proceedings.
The senior coroner, Patricia Harding, said that Sarah Everard's body has been released to her family, who can now begin to plan her funeral.
During the hearing, Harding expressed her deepest sympathies towards Sarah's family for their tragic loss.
The inquest, which was held in Maidstone in Kent, has been adjourned and will be reconsidered after the outcome of criminal proceedings.
The hearing came after the second post-mortem examination was carried out on Everard's body, after the first was deemed inconclusive, police said.
Giving evidence at the Inquest, Detective Inspector Lee Tullett said: "Police were first involved on March 4 in the afternoon, that was as a result of Sarah’s boyfriend Josh contacting us as he had grown concerned he hadn’t been able to reach or contact her."
He said that Sarah had attended a dinner at a friend's house in Clapham, south London, before leaving at around 9pm and subsequently calling her boyfriend, Josh.
He said that the call terminated at 9.27pm, after which "there was no further activity on her phone."
Detective Insp Tullett said that "she failed to attend a meeting at work the following day," which was "out of character."
He told the court that Josh had grown concerned and contacted the police to report her as missing on 4 March, the day after Sarah was last seen.
Police are still awaiting the results of the second post-mortem examination of Sarah Everard's body, the court heard.
Her body was found at approximately 4.20pm on 10 March in woodland near Ashford in Kent.
A Met Police officer is facing trial, accused of her kidnap and murder.
