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The mother of a month-old baby was murdered and dumped in a canal on Christmas Day as her family waited for her to come home and open her presents.

Ruby Love’s body was spotted floating in the Grand Union Canal in Southall, West London, on Sunday morning.

Police believe the 23-year-old was thrown into the water just hours earlier, after being hit on the back of the head and strangled.

Miss Love, who also had a two-year-old son and nine-year-old daughter, was last seen at 6pm on Christmas Eve before going out for the evening.

She had been expected to return home on Christmas Day to open presents with her children and her mother and sister, with whom she lived in Harrow, North London.

Last night police charged Miss Love’s boyfriend of five years with her murder. Manzar Juma, 27, is due to appear before Brent Magistrates Court later today.

Miss Love’s distraught mother Precious said: “She was just the most lovely girl, the best daughter I could have asked for.

“We were having our Christmas dinner and opening our presents as we were waiting for her. I waited and waited and I texted her through the night.

“I waited until it had got to 24 hours after [she left] and then I gave it one more hour, and then there was a knock on the door. It was the police.

“It’s such a loss - I do not know how we are going to cope.”

The 45-year-old identified her daughter’s body on Boxing Day. She said she app- eared to have been hit on the back of her head, and that the body bore strangulation marks.

An initial post-mortem examination was unable to establish a formal cause of death.

Yesterday Miss Love’s sister Sarah, 22, fought back tears as she described her devotion to her children.

“She loved her kids but she was a mother to everyone,” she said. “She always protected me and I could not protect her. She was an angel. We have just not stopped crying. I still cannot believe this.”

As a tribute, her mother has painted a white cross on Miss Love’s front door under the words: “Ruby’s Angel House.” The Hindu-Sikh family had converted to Christianity and changed their surname from Malik. Miss Love worked in their property business.

Yesterday police divers were still searching the section of the canal where her body was found. The area forms part of the popular Hillingdon Trail walk.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: “Police have launched a murder investigation following the discovery of a body in the Grand Union Canal.

“Officers are appealing for anyone who witnessed anything suspicious on, or before Christmas Day.”

He added that officers “are aware of previous incidents which will form part of our investigation”. - Daily Mail