Laura Schwartzenberger, 43, was one of two officers shot to death on Tuesday.
Family and friends of Florida FBI agent Laura Schwartzenberger, who was shot dead in the line of duty along with a colleague this week, gathered on Saturday for an exciting memorial service in her honor.
Schwartzenberger, 43, leaves behind her husband and two children.
Schwartzenberger was “a true protector of those she loved and cared for,” Schwartzenberger’s friend, Brenda Chavez, told those present at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
“For a dear friend, a loving wife, a loving mother, an inspiring sister, an affectionate daughter who would make any father proud, and for the greatest tough guy I know, Laura, you have blessed the lives of every person you have touched,” she said. “We will never forget you.”
Schwartzenberger and agent Daniel Algin were shot dead while executing a search warrant in Sunrise, Florida, on Tuesday morning. The search was “to apprehend evidence in connection with the suspected possession of child pornography,” said FBI Agents Association President Brian O’Hare. Three other officers were injured. The suspect died of a self-inflicted gunshot, according to the FBI.
Schwartzenberger joined the FBI in 2005.
In 2007, she became the first and only female member of the SWAT team at the FBI’s field office in Albuquerque, said FBI director Christopher Wray at the service.
In 2010, Schwartzenberger was transferred to Miami and joined the violent crime squad against children, which was his “true calling,” said Wray.
“She led a life of pure determination, dedication and courage,” said Wray, calling her “a true American hero.”
“She was brave in the pursuit of criminals … and trusted her heart and compassion in small moments, when it was most needed,” he said. “It brought light to some of the darkest places.”
“She was like a mother to some of the younger agents,” said Wray. “She exuded a quiet confidence and instilled that confidence in everyone who worked on her cases.
“She was a body and mind athlete,” said Wray. “She had a keen mental focus, stamina and a sense of teamwork and camaraderie that allowed her to move forward, case after case and victim after victim.
“There is a weight on our hearts, a burden unlike any other, because there is nothing more devastating to the FBI family than the loss of an agent in the line of duty,” Wray said. “It is the news that we pray that it never comes, and when it does, every FBI employee feels it at the bottom of his soul.”
Wray said Schwartzenberger and Alfin were “two warriors who took on one of the FBI’s toughest jobs – crimes against children”, and called them “two of the best the FBI had to offer”.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said the flags will be raised with a half mast on Saturday and Sunday in honor of Schwartzenberger and Alfin.
“Your sacrifice and courage will never be forgotten,” tweeted DeSantis.
Schwartzenberger was from Pueblo, Colorado. Colorado Governor Jared Polis ordered flags on public buildings to be raised in person on Saturday.
A memorial service for Alfin will be held on Sunday.