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GRUNDY, Va. -- Friends, family and community members will pay final respects to 4-year-old Ethan Stacy at a funeral Wednesday.
Ethan Stacy's father was fighting tears at a wake for his son Tuesday in rural Virginia.
KSL News was there and spoke to the funeral director, who said he has never seen this kind of outpouring of support in his 30-plus years of funeral work.
The body of 4-year-old Ethan Stacy now lies in a blue casket, with gold trim and angels on the corners. He also has his favorite toy in the casket with him, at the request of his father, since he loved Transformers so much.
Joe Stacy said Tuesday he doesn't mind that prosecutors are taking their time filing charges in his son's death. He tells the Deseret News he wants them to avoid any mistakes that could derail a criminal case.
Deseret News:
'They need to pay for taking my son away,' Ethan Stacy's father says
Joe Stacy talks about his son Ethan and his accused killers as he attended a private viewing Tuesday for his 4-year old son in Grundy, Va.Police in Utah allege Ethan Stacy died of abuse and neglect by his mother, Stephanie Sloop, and stepfather, Nathanael Sloop.
Both have been jailed on suspicion of aggravated murder. Prosecutors say they're waiting for a medical examiner to rule on a cause of death before filing charges.
Police last week recovered the boy's disfigured body from a grave dug in the Utah mountains.
A funeral for Ethan Stacy is scheduled for Wednesday morning. There will be an hour-long service, followed by a procession to the cemetery.
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Story compiled with contributions from Nicole Gonzales and The Associated Press.
