KEY POINTS:
Family and friends of murder victim Joanne Wang laid her to rest yesterday with a plea that her death "wakes up" New Zealand.
The 39-year-old was run down in front of her 8-year-old son Weimin Huang in the car park at Westfield Manukau after her bag was snatched from her on June 16. She died in hospital the following day.
A 21-year-old Otara man has been charged with murder and four others have been arrested for their alleged involvement in her death. Police are hunting two more men.
At Joanne's funeral at the Manukau Memorial Gardens, family and friends spoke of her "sacrifice".
The celebrant said she wanted the death to "wake up this country" to the impact of violent crime.
The service, which was delivered in Chinese and English, began with mourners being given an opportunity to view Joanne, and pay their respects to her husband and son, who was wearing a white sash around his waist as a mark of respect.
The boy, who stayed close to his father, carried a large photograph of his smiling mother into the chapel before the service. The image was placed on a table at the head of the room alongside traditional offerings of apples and flowers.
Joanne was born in the Shanxi province of China, but moved to New Zealand 12 years ago. She married her husband, Allan Huang, in 1999 and they owned three Hollywood bakeries around Auckland.
More than 200 people, including St John ambulance staff and former customers, attended the service, which was followed by a private family burial.
Joanne's older brother, Jie Wang, wept as he told mourners his "lovely sister" had made him "the luckiest person in the world. But I am the saddest person in the world because you left me," he said.
Her widower made a tearful speech, thanking police and saying his wife was an intelligent, hardworking woman.
A slideshow of family photographs showed her on holiday with her husband and playing happily on a beach with her son.
