Lucy Xiong's family delivers emotional speech at vigil

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- There's heartbreak on the banks of Fresno canal Monday night as Lucy Xiong's parents come to the reality their daughter is gone.

Fresno police recovered a body in the water on Saturday, and the coroner's office confirmed that person is Lucy two days later.

Accepting a child's death isn't easy for any father, and for Kor Xiong, the reality is almost impossible to handle.

"My heart hurts, I don't know what to do, I talk, I cry all day," he told the gathered crowd at a vigil.

As people gathered for this Hmong tradition of laying people to rest, Kor greeted every friend and stranger in the crowd repeating the same message.

"Today she's gone, never come back," he said.

And he's doing so while trying to convince himself of that truth.

"I can't forget her, she's always in my head, always in my mind," Kor exclaimed.

Lucy Xiong's disappearance had an entire city praying for her safe return until Monday when Fresno Police confirmed the body recovered from this canal belonged to her.

Detectives say it appears she accidentally slipped and drowned, but the family has its doubts.

"I believe she would never kill herself, even if she is dead, her spirit will come back to us," Lucy's mom Chao Yang said through a translator.

Healing hasn't come easy for this family, who say finding Lucy offers little closure.

"I can't believe that she float in the water, I can't believe it, maybe someone struck her," Kor said.

She may be at peace now, but the family's search for truth is just beginning.