Funeral processions by police and military held in 2 states for El Paso detective killed in Arizona crash

EL PASO, Texas -- An El Paso police narcotics detective killed in an Arizona car crash earlier this week was given a final farewell by law enforcement and military colleagues in two states on Friday.

51-year-old Richard Allbee was a 19-year veteran of the El Paso Police Department and a retired command sergeant major with the Texas Army National Guard. He was killed when a suspected drunk drive drove across the median on an Arizona highway and hit Allbee's pickup truck head on.

Law enforcement in Arizona honored Allbee with a funeral escort on Friday afternoon to the Safford Municipal Airport, where his remains were then flown back to El Paso. (You can watch it in the video player below.)

Once his body arrived in Sun City, his evening funeral was preceded by an escort from the EPPD and the National Guard; colleagues said Allbee made both the police force and the military better institutions.

“He brought a lot to the table. He did bring a lot to the battalion and the battalion did grow a lot when he was with us,” said 1st Sgt. Marcus Dominguez, who served with Allbee in the Texas National Guard.

After escorting his casket to an El Paso funeral home, the police and service members all emptied out, letting the family mourn on their own. For those who worked with Allbee, they say they will remember him fondly and reflected on how he always pushed others to better themselves.

“It was always competing, but always at the end it was learning from what happened and that’s the biggest thing that he would try to bring out was ‘you didn’t win, but how can you make yourself better,” Dominguez said.

Local police and military colleagues also said they would continue to be there for whatever the Allbee family needs.