Danny Conorquie Buried with Honor in Georgeville

While the repercussions of last Thursday’s murder play out in local and, hopefully international circles, all that is of no concern to Tourism Police Special Constable Danny Conorquie. He was laid to rest on Sunday in Georgeville. News Five has been very reliably informed that the Ministry of National Security would not give permission for Conorquie to be buried with full Police honours. But they gave in, we are told, under pressure from senior Police Officers. So as befits an officer killed in the line of duty, young Danny was sent off with respect and ceremony. Mike Rudon was in Georgeville and has the story.

Mike Rudon, Reporting

The funeral service for Tourism Police Special Constable Danny Conorquie was held at his home in Georgeville in the Cayo District. The community, family, friends, colleagues, men and women in uniform…all came out en masse to bid farewell to the young man who was slain in the line of duty, as he protected tourists at his posting at Caracol.

All his life Danny Conorquie wanted to be a Police officer, and had intended to submit his name in the new intake of recruits. He never got that chance to realize his dream.

Jennifer Conorquie

Jennifer Conorquie, Aunt of Danny Conorquie

“To keep his dreams alive of becoming an officer. This was his greatest aspiration in life, but he never fulfilled it, when his life came to a sudden stop at noon on September twenty-fifth, 2014. When his cousin Josette passed out of the Training School he asked her to show him how to march like a real officer in uniform because when his day comes, he wanted to be able to march better than Josette.”

It has been an emotional time for the family, and the funeral service brought home the reality that Danny was gone…and the pain of his passing was almost too much to bear.

While Special Constable Danny Conorquie never achieved his highest aspiration…that of becoming a Police Officer…he was bid farewell with full honours on Sunday! From his home, he was taken to the Georgeville Cemetery with all pomp and solemn ceremony – given the respect and honour due any Police Officer killed in the line of duty.

At the cemetery…the beautiful but heart-wrenching ceremonial folding of the flag signalled the death of a hero. And young Danny Conorquie was saluted as just that by the Police Department.

Danny Conorquie becomes the first Belizean law enforcement officer to be killed by Guatemalan bandits while on duty. Mike Rudon for News Five.

We note that the Minister of National Security, John Saldivar, did not attend the funeral. Neither did the Minister of Tourism Manuel Heredia.