Edward A. Caban speaks after being sworn in as NYPD police commissioner outside New York City Police Department 40th Precinct on Monday, July 17, 2023, in New York.

Jeenah Moon/AP

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Jeenah Moon/AP

Edward A. Caban speaks after being sworn in as NYPD police commissioner outside New York City Police Department 40th Precinct on Monday, July 17, 2023, in New York.

Jeenah Moon/AP

A new police chief has been appointed in New York City, making him the first Latino person in the role.

Edward Caban was sworn in Monday as the 46th police commissioner. He had previously been serving as first deputy commissioner after former Commissioner Keechant Sewell resigned last month.

Caban, a Bronx native of Puerto Rican descent, joined the NYPD in 1991. Over the past 32 years, he has served in several roles, including as a sergeant, lieutenant, captain, deputy inspector and inspector. In 2022, he was named first deputy commissioner.

“The NYPD is the most consequential police department in all of law enforcement,” Caban said. “Its storied history, its living legacy of valor, bravery and sacrifice, of ordinary New Yorkers who did extraordinary things.”

During his time as deputy commissioner, there was a double digit decrease in shootings and murders, according to the mayor’s office.

Caban thanked his parents, wife and children, who were in attendance, as well as Sewell.

Caban’s father, Juan Caban, was a transit officer at the same time as New York Mayor Eric Adams, and was the president of the Transit Police Hispanic Society.

“We knew we had to get it right,” Adams said. “We knew we had to appoint the right person, and I saw in Eddie long ago the possibilities. I knew that there was something special about Edward Caban.”

Additionally, the city named Tania Kinsella as the deputy commissioner, making her the first person of color in the role.

“From the very first moment I joined the NYPD 20 years ago, it was love at first sight because being a police officer is about so much more than keeping people safe,” she said. “It’s about building community, helping others from all walks of life, and making a difference in people’s lives, especially those in need.”