CLARENDON, Jamaica — On a somber Saturday in central Jamaica, dozens of people spanning two connected communities — fellow law enforcement officers from the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), and the late detective’s loved ones — came together at Grace Baptist Church, located on Sewell Crescent in the busy town of May Pen, to pay their final respects to a decorated decades-long servant of Jamaica’s public safety.
The honoree was retired Detective Inspector George Washington Williams, who was widely known to colleagues and friends by his warm, affectionate nickname “Greybeard.” Williams passed away on February 2, 2026, while residing in the United Kingdom, following 12 years of retirement after an extraordinary four-decade career in policing.
After the farewell service, Williams’ remains were laid to rest in the family burial plot in Somerset, a quiet community in the parish of Manchester, not far from where he served much of his later career.
Speaking on behalf of Jamaica’s top law enforcement official, Commissioner of Police Kevin Blake, Area 3 Police Division Commander Assistant Commissioner of Police Christopher Phillips delivered a moving tribute that highlighted Williams’ far-reaching impact on policing across Jamaica. Over his 37-plus years of service, Williams held assignments across nearly every major branch of the JCF, leaving his mark on units from Kingston Western and St Thomas Criminal Investigation Bureau to the Security Intelligence Branch, the Narcotics Division, and the elite Major Investigation Task Force. He also held operational posts in the parishes of Clarendon, Manchester, and St Catherine’s South, building a reputation as a reliable and dedicated officer across the island.
“Throughout his entire tenure, he served the people of Jamaica with unwavering diligence and deep passion,” Phillips shared during the service, noting that Williams’ contributions were repeatedly recognized by the force over his career. The retired inspector collected an extraordinary 73 professional commendations for his work, and was awarded the Medal of Honour for Long Service and Good Conduct in 1995, with a second bar to the medal granted in 2006 to mark his continued distinguished service.
Photographs from the service, capturing Williams’ family members in attendance and Phillips delivering his tribute, were captured by photojournalist Llewellyn Wynter, who also documented the event in on-site video.