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Hundreds pay tribute to fallen officer at funeral

Wiping away tears as she read her letter, Rebeca Marmolejo, the eldest daughter of Eduardo Marmolejo, told hundreds of officers, friends and family about the person she called her best friend, her coach and her father.

"I can still hear your voice," the teen said. "You were always there no matter what, you were the glue that kept our family together, our strong foundation … Now that you've clocked out, it's time for me to cover the shift. It's my turn to be the bigger person, just like you. Daddy, you are one in a million and there is no one else like you."

A day after laying Chicago Police Officer Conrad Gary to rest, officers of the department's Calumet District and hundreds more returned to St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel to pay their respects to his partner Marmolejo.

The officers were struck and killed by a South Shore Line train while pursuing a suspect on Monday, at the tail end of a year that has now seen four Chicago police officers killed in the line of duty.

• This report was produced in partnership with the Chicago Sun-Times. For related coverage, visit chicago.suntimes.com.

A Chicago police officer, right, comforts the mother of Eduardo Marmolejo as his casket arrives at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel for his funeral Saturday in Chicago. Tyler LaRiviere/Chicago Sun-Times via AP
Officer Eduardo Marmolejo's daughter holds the folded Chicago flag that was draped over his casket Saturday in Chicago. Hundreds crowded into a Roman Catholic Church on Chicago's South Side to remember the second of two officers struck and killed by a train. Tyler LaRiviere/Chicago Sun-Times via AP
Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson passes the folded Chicago flag from the casket of Officer Eduardo Marmolejo to Mayor Rahm Emanuel Saturday in Chicago. Hundreds crowded into a Roman Catholic Church on Chicago's South Side to remember the second of two officers struck and killed by a train. Tyler LaRiviere/Chicago Sun-Times via AP
Chicago Police Officer Eduardo Marmolejo
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