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Families Mourn Gary Murder Victims

(CBS) -- Families of the Gary murder victims are showing their grief and their frustration with a police response to a missing loved, reports CBS 2's Pamela Jones.

Latasha Allen, Afrikka Hardy's cousin, had a message for her alleged killer.

"What was your purpose? Did you have a daughter? You have a mother, you have nieces, why would you want to do this to her?"

Hardy's loved ones raised candles Tuesday night in her honor at the place she used to call home near West Flournoy and South Albany in Chicago.

"He'll get his day in court and I hope he gets what the hell he deserves," said Allen.

Prosecutors say Darren Vann met Hardy at this Motel 6 in Hammond, Indiana Friday and that Vann later admitted to killing Hardy and Teaira Batey who has been missing since January.

"She didn't deserve to get hurt. She didn't deserve to get hurt. She was a sweet person," said Gloria Cullum, Batey's mother.

Gloria Cullom lives in Minnesota now but her daughter's body was found in an abandoned house in Gary, just eight blocks from the home she had shared with her mother.

Batey's family blames Gary police for not searching vacant homes in. that area.

"We were tipped off that Teaira Batey was in an abandoned house and so when we received that tip we immediately let them know that so if they had actually went to those houses and actually searched those houses they would have found Teaira Batey and they probably would have found her killer," said Lynette Collum, Teaira's cousin.

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