Andrea Rebello Update: Hofstra student accidentally killed by police remembered at funeral as "wonderful person, wonderful sister"

(CBS) SLEEPY HOLLOW, N.Y. -Hundreds of mourners attended the funeral Wednesday of Andrea Rebello, the 21-year-old Hofstra University junior who was accidentally killed by a police officer's bullet during a hostage standoff, according to CBS New York. 

PICTURES: Slain Hofstra University student Andrea Rebello

During the service at St. Teresa of Avila Church in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., Rebello's family followed the pastor as he led her coffin, draped in white, to the altar, CBS New York reported.

Relatives and friends reportedly lit candles and wept as they remembered the 21-year-old public relations major.

"She was a wonderful person, a wonderful sister," friend Carla Correia said. "She was very close to the Portuguese community, an example for all the kids."

At the service, the pastor said Rebello would be welcomed in heaven, reports the station.

The station reported that on Friday morning, investigators said police responded to a home invasion at Rebello's off-campus home and found suspect Dalton Smith holding the college student in a headlock. Smith pointed his gun at one of the officers, who responded by firing eight shots at the suspect, police said.

One of the bullets struck and killed Rebello, reports CBS New York. Investigators reported that Smith was also killed in the incident.

Some of the victim's loved ones wondered if the shooting was preventable, stating that perhaps the first responders should have waited for backup, said the station.

James Carver, president of the Nassau County Patrolmen's Benevolent Association said on Tuesday that despite the many questions people have raised about the shooting, he stands by the officer involved, reports the station.

"To those who second guess, walk a day in our shoes and see how easy your decision would have been that day," Carver said at a press conference, according to CBS New York. "Our job is to get inside and make sure we can protect as many people as we can."

Carver said that the officer "went into the house, he deemed it was not appropriate to wait at that time. If he would have waited, we don't know what could have happened," Carver said, adding that the only person responsible for Rebello's death was "the ex-con who was on parole."

Smith, according to the state Department of Correction and Community Supervision, was released on parole in May 2012 after serving nine years of a 10-year sentence for attempted robbery and criminal possession of a weapon, reports the station.

According to CBS New York, Ed Mangano, Nassau County Executive, has ordered an investigation into the shooting.