A veteran cop killed by cancer after working amid the deadly toxins of Ground Zero was hailed at his low-key funeral Wednesday as one of the unsung heroes of 9/11. The sendoff for veteran NYPD Officer Martin Tom was intentionally done with little fanfare over fears the city might seize his corpse - as it did with another cop killed by "9/11 toxic exposure."
Tom, 49, the father of a 4-year-old daughter, died last week after a 14-month fight with liver cancer that eventually spread to his brain.
"He's another example of the many heroes in the Police Department who did what we asked of them and paid for it with their life," said Deputy Inspector Roy Richter, Tom's commanding officer from 2002 to 2008.
Tom was also eulogized by his brother at the service inside the Wah Wing Sang Funeral Home.
Dozens of officers raised a white-gloved salute as Tom's casket, draped in a green, blue and white NYPD flag, was carried outside. The folded flag was presented to Tom's wife, Kitty, and their child, Chloe, before a hearse - piled high with carnations, mums and roses - led a procession to the cemetery.
The Sheepshead Bay resident, who joined the NYPD in 1990, worked a regular post-9/11 Ground Zero security detail.