The parents of a teenager who took his own life nearly three months ago are embroiled in a court battle over whether his body should be buried or cremated due to their differing religious beliefs.
Gabrielle Barbus, 17, died last December but he has still not been laid to rest because his father Stefan Barbus and his mother Georgia Opritescu ‘do not agree on what should happen to his body’.
Mr Barbus adheres to an orthodox branch of the Christian faith, which dictates that his son’s ‘soul’ would be in peril if he is not buried.
However, Ms Opritescu is not religious and wishes for Gabrielle’s body to be cremated and his ashes scattered in the countryside to ‘return him to nature’.
Mr Barbus obtained an injunction last month, preventing Ms Opritescu ‘from taking steps to dispose of Gabrielle’s body’.
The pair, who split up in 2010 when Gabrielle was two-years-old before divorcing in 2013, have now taken their heartbreaking dispute to the High Court in London.
Judge Jonathan Klein was told that Gabrielle, a talented up-and-coming photographer lived with his mother and her family in Hornchurch, east London.
He tragically took his own life on December 30 last year following struggles with his mental health.
In an online tribute, Gabrielle’s older brother, Antonio, 23, described him as ‘a bright soul’ with ‘a gentle smile that warmed people’.
Gabrielle Barbus (left) is pictured with his older brother Antonio (right) who paid tribute to him following his death from suicide
Gabrielle’s mother Georgia Opritescu (right) arrives at London’s High Court with Antonio
James Poole, who is Mr Barbus’s lawyer, told the judge that even though Gabrielle had been brought up by his mother, his father had remained ‘involved in his life’.
He added that his untimely death ‘was and is devastating for all members of the family’.
‘Mr Barbus’s immediate reaction was to reach out to Ms Opritescu,’ Mr Poole told the judge.
‘Despite attempts to agree what should happen to Gabrielle’s body, no agreement could be reached.’
He added Mr Barbus subsequently went to court and won the injunction after learning Ms Opritescu had ‘obtained a grant of letters of administration (of Gabrielle’s estate) without notice to him and as a result the coroner’s office was going to release Gabrielle’s body to Ms Opritescu alone’.
Giving evidence, Mr Barbus told the court: ‘The reason why it is so important, the burial, is that he [Gabrielle] was baptised Christian orthodox.
‘A burial respects the sanctity of the human body and soul and it is my belief that we will all one day be resurrected.
‘That is why cremation is not acceptable as it destroys the body and is irreversible.
‘This is not just a duty, this is a way of respect to my child. I’m not here to win something. We already lost our child.’
His barrister told the judge: ‘The key issues that require the court’s determination are whether Gabrielle should be buried or cremated and, if cremated, what should happen to his ashes.
‘Mr Barbus wishes Gabrielle to be buried. Ms Opritescu wishes that he be cremated.
‘Mr Barbus’s wishes regarding burial are heartfelt and rooted in his orthodox Christian faith.
Stefan Barbus (pictured arriving at court) adheres to an orthodox branch of the Christian faith, which dictates that his son’s ‘soul’ would be in peril if he is not buried
‘It is hard to put into words the importance of this issue to him – to Mr Barbus, what is at stake is Gabrielle’s soul.
‘Ms Opritescu prefers that they are scattered somewhere in Devon. There is no general right of ownership of a dead body.’
He explained to the judge that the court must decide what happens by taking into account ‘the wishes of the deceased, the reasonable requirements and wishes of the family and friends of the deceased who are left to grieve…and that the body be disposed of with all proper respect and decency and if possible without further delay’.
‘This is not a case where there is any clear indication of Gabrielle’s wishes, such as instructions in a will or even diary entry,’ Mr Poole said.
‘That is obviously not unusual. Many people do not set out their funerary wishes, especially 17-year-old boys.’
The barrister said that, as an alternative position if his request for burial were to fail, Mr Barbus’s wish is that Gabrielle’s ashes ‘are interred so that there is a place where he and his family can visit…and light a candle.’
But Ms Opritescu told the judge she wants her son to be free and returned to nature by his ashes being scattered, not ‘confined’ in a coffin or an urn in the ground.
In the witness box, she told the judge: ‘His father believes, but Gabrielle did not grow up in a religious household.
‘My son Gabrielle and the life he lived would not want to be confined by the ground. It would upset me.
‘I want him to be returned to the nature he loved, not confined.’
Her barrister, Tom Alkin, told the judge that, during a conversation when he was 11, Gabrielle said he agreed that ‘cremation was a healthier way of dealing with saying goodbye to a loved one’.
‘Gabrielle would have wanted it this way if only to minimise the pain suffered by his own mother,’ he said.
‘The wishes of those closest to Gabrielle should carry more weight.’
Addressing Mr Barbus, he said: ‘The court respects your right to hold these beliefs, but you don’t suggest that Gabrielle was raised to be observant of the orthodox faith?’
The father replied: ‘He was born under our tradition. He was baptised in our religion and continued in our religion and never changed his faith.
‘He had a faith in God because he never expressed anything that would suggest the opposite.’
When the barrister pointed out that Gabrielle was still a baby when he was baptised, Mr Barbus added: ‘He went to church with me a few times.’
Gabrielle’s older brother Antonio backed his mother in court, telling the judge: ‘I want Gabrielle to be free – for his remains to be part of the whole world, the natural world that he loved.
‘To us a grave would not be a place of rest but a place of confinement, imposed upon him and us by his father.’
Summing up at the end of a day-long hearing, the judge said: ‘There is no doubt that everybody has heartfelt feelings and strong views at the end of the day.
‘The fact is that Mr Barbus wants certain arrangements and that alternative arrangements would distress him. The same can be said of Ms Opritescu.
‘At the end of the day, what matters is how the remaining family members feel.’
Reserving his decision until a later date, he added: ‘I need some time to reflect on the he evidence and consider what is a very difficult case.’
In an online memorial, Antonio paid tribute to Gabrielle. He wrote: ‘My brother, Gabrielle, was a bright soul.
‘He carried a gentle smile that warmed people; the kind of smile that made you feel like everything was okay.
‘Gabrielle had a gift for photography; he noticed the tiny details others missed and saw the world with a perspective that was uniquely his.
‘When he wasn’t behind a lens, he was often found on the football pitch as a goalie – a natural protector who thrived under the pressure of the game.
‘He also had a creative rhythm to him, spending time writing his own rhymes and singing them, finding words for things most people couldn’t express.
‘He was a son, a brother, a friend, and someone who mattered deeply to many.. But Gabrielle was struggling. And like so many people, he felt he had to hide it. He felt he had no way out.
‘On the 30th of December 2025, at only 17 years old – he lost a battle with himself and took his life.
‘This loss has sent a wave of shock through everyone who knew him. His friends, his classmates, and his loved ones are all carrying a heavy burden of grief and unanswered questions.
‘Nobody should ever have to bury a child. And nobody should have to carry this kind of pain alone.
‘When you lose someone like this, the grief is compounded by a silence that is hard to break.
‘As a family, we’ve realised that the struggle isn’t just the mental health itself, but the feeling that you have to protect everyone else from your pain.
‘We believe that by talking about Gabrielle openly, and by providing his friends with the support they need right now, we can start to break that silence.
‘Suicide is preventable, but only if we create a world where people feel safe enough to say they aren’t okay.’
– For confidential support, call Samaritans on 116 123, visit samaritans.org or visit https://www.thecalmzone.net/get-support