Adrian Martinez Jr. hugs his mother, Rosa Mayen, after speaking at the funeral for Officer Enrique Martinez at St. Rita Cascia Shrine, 7740 S. Western Ave., on Nov. 18, 2024. (Anthony Vazquez / Sun-Times via Pool)

Hundreds of people attended a funeral service Monday morning for Chicago police Officer Enrique Martinez, who was fatally shot while on duty earlier this month.

Martinez’s older brother Adrian Martinez Garcia, also a police officer, spoke during the funeral service held at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel in Ashburn about how he and his brother were inseparable growing up.

“My mother, she would push us to become doctors and lawyers like every Latino mom. My brother and I had other dreams. We wanted to be Chicago police officers,” Martinez Garcia said. “My mother tried her best to shield us from this profession, but as hard as she tried, we realized it wasn’t just a job, it was our calling to serve the disadvantaged and to protect the forgotten.”

Martinez, 26, was killed while conducting a Nov. 4 traffic stop in the Chatham neighborhood. He was on the job for three years.

Martinez Garcia recalled how at the age of five he helped name his little brother after Spanish singer and songwriter Enrique Iglesias, who Martinez Garcia was a fan of at the time, drawing laughter from attendees.

CPD officers guide out the casket of police Officer Enrique Martinez on Nov. 18, 2024. (Anthony Vazquez / Sun-Times via Pool Report)

A procession is scheduled to a private burial shortly following Monday’s service. A visitation was held Sunday afternoon at Blake-Lamb Funeral Home in south suburban Oak Lawn.

Authorities have charged Darion McMillian, 23, with murder in the fatal shooting of Martinez. He is currently being detained pending trial.

McMillian allegedly used a handgun equipped with an illegal machine gun conversion device to shoot and kill Martinez and another passenger in his vehicle during a traffic stop. McMillian was on electronic monitoring for another case during the time of the shooting.

“When we look at the circumstances of what occurred, the question is, how many other lives did he save that night by making that stop at that particular moment?” said Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling said of Martinez during the funeral service. “How many innocent people did he protect that could have become victims had Officer Martinez not stopped that vehicle that night?”

CPD Superintendent Larry Snelling hugs officer Enriquez Maritnez’s father Adrian Martinez during the funeral services on Nov. 18, 2024. (Anthony Vazquez / Sun-Times via Pool)

“The willingness to give your life for the safety of others is the most noble thing you can do,” Snelling continued.

Mayor Brandon Johnson had initially planned to be in attendance for Monday's funeral service, but announced Saturday he would not attend following a request from Martinez’s family. The family also requested that Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker not attend Monday’s services, according to Chicago Fraternal Order of Police union John Catanzara.

In a video posted last week, Catanzara criticized Johnson for initially planning to be in attendance, comparing the situation to the funeral of Officer Luis Huesca, whose family similarly asked that Johnson stay away.

Martinez is among several Chicago police officers who have been killed in the last few years. Officer Luis Huesca was killed in April. Officers Aréanah Preston and Andrés Vásquez Lasso were killed last year. Officer Ella French was killed in 2021.

Matt Masterson and Heather Cherone contributed to this report.

Contact Eunice Alpasan: @eunicealpasan | 773-509-5362 | [email protected]