July 1 (UPI) — New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Saturday announced that he has named a new acting police commissioner after the abrupt exit of Keechant Sewell.
Adams, in a news release, said the NYPD’s new acting commissioner would be Eddie Caban — the department’s second-highest-ranking member who was once accused of cheating on his sergeant’s exam and has been disciplined for misconduct four other times.
“First, I want to thank Commissioner Sewell for her year and a half of service to the greatest city in the world. Commissioner Sewell not only led the NYPD with distinction and honor every day, but she inspired millions of young girls and boys in her role,” Adams said.
Sewell abruptly resigned on June 12 without much explanation for why she left her office as the city’s first female police commissioner.
However, her resignation came after Adams specifically asked her not to discipline Jeff Madres, the chief of department, over allegations he pressured police officers in Brooklyn to drop the arrest of one of his friends who had retired from the force and was said to have chased three children with a gun.
“Today, we are safer than we were on January 1, 2022, with most major crimes down, and that is thanks, in large part, to Commissioner Sewell taking a leading role in this administration’s tireless work to make New York City safer,” Adams said.
“All New Yorkers owe her a debt of gratitude, and we wish her the best as she embarks on the next chapter.”
Adams called Caban a “consummate professional” with more than three decades of service in the NYPD, despite the past allegations against him.
“I know the hard-working men and women of our city’s police department have a strong leader in place until a more formal announcement is made in the coming weeks,” Adams said.
After the allegations against Caban were revealed by the New York Post, citing documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, the NYPD issued a statement that called them “decades-old” and said “nearly all” of which have been disproven.