GRETNA- It was an emotional evening as hundreds of balloons were released by the friends and family of Stasy Charles, who passed away last week.

"This is one of the hardest things I've ever been through. I never imagined that I would lose one of my closest friends," Charles' friend Maci Duplessis said.

According to police, Charles was found lying in the parking lot of her apartment complex with several stab wounds last Thursday. She died during surgery.

Police say the man responsible is her ex-boyfriend, Steven Heinrich Jr., who police say crashed his vehicle and set himself on fire. He died the following day.

Charles filed a restraining order against Heinrich just last month.

"This is just heartbreaking, and we should not be here right now. This should not be happening. I feel like

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