The V.I. Police Department and Lt. Gov. Gregory Francis held a ceremony on the tarmac of the Cyril E. King Airport on Thursday as the remains of the late Police Officer Colvin Georges were returned to St. Thomas for funeral services and interment.
Georges was shot in the line of duty May 26 and gravely wounded. He died early Saturday morning at a Miami hospital, where he was being treated for his injuries.
Georges and fellow officer, Aaron Hodge, both came under fire while approaching a suspect at the Contant Car Wash on St. Thomas, near where 22-year-old Jose Fuentes was gunned down the night before.
Police returned fire and one suspect, Gerald Jackson, was killed. Hodge was released from the Schneider Regional Medical Center a few days after the incident. Georges, gravely wounded and paralyzed from the neck down, was airlifted to Florida a few days after the incident.
Joining Francis at Thursday’s ceremony were V.I. Police Commissioner Henry White; St. Thomas-St. John Police Chief Darren Foy; deputy chiefs of police Maria Jones and Dwayne de Graff; and a number of Georges’ fellow officers. A large number of Georges’ family and friends were also present when the body arrived on American Airlines Flight 505 from Miami five days after he succumbed to his injuries, according to a statement from Government House.
During a solemn moment before Georges’ body was removed from the aircraft, Hodge, who was also shot May 26, climbed into the plane’s cargo bay to assist airline personnel in draping the transfer case with an American flag. The body was later lowered from the aircraft and escorted by six members of the VIPD Special Operations Bureau to a waiting hearse. Georges and Hodge’s last assignment were as members of the department’s Special Operations Bureau.
Georges joined the force after graduating from the police academy in 2010, where he earned the exemplary service award and scored the highest physical fitness score for men. (See related links below)
The hearse was transported under police escort to Turnbull’s Funeral Home. Funeral services for Officer Colvin Georges, a two-year veteran of the department, are scheduled for Oct. 13.
Earlier today, South Florida law enforcement paid tribute to Georges with a police procession from a funeral home in Hollywood to the Miami International Airport. At the Miami airport, there was a police ceremony as well.
