President Luis Abinader has appointed Major General Andrés Modesto Cruz Cruz as the new Director General of the National Police, effective 17 February 2026. The move was formalized through Decree 111-26.
Cruz Cruz, who previously served as the institution’s Inspector General, succeeds Major General Ramón Antonio Guzmán Peralta. Under the same decree, Guzmán Peralta has been placed into retirement and will transition into a new role as the police advisor to the Executive Branch.
The Police law orders the appointment of a new chief every two years. The appointment is grounded in the Constitution and Law 590-16 (the Organic Law of the National Police), which authorizes the President to select a director general from among active-duty general officers.
Cruz Cruz had been the Police Inspector General at the time of his appointment. He has also directed the Police Internal Affairs department (2023-2026) and served as the regional director for the southern region.
He is an engineering graduate from the Pedro Henriquez Ureña University in Santo Domingo. He has a masters in Defense and Security from the Instituto Superior para la Defensa “General Juan Pablo Duarte y Díez”. He has taken courses in transformational leadership, criminal investigations, crisis management, energy security and VIP protection.
This leadership change comes as the administration continues its initiative to reform the police force and improve public safety across the Dominican Republic.
Previous police directors under Abinader have been:
Major General Edward Sánchez González (August 2020 – October 2021).
Major General Eduardo Alberto Then (October 2021 – November 2023).
Major General Ramón Antonio Guzmán Peralta (November 2023 – February 2026).
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N Digital
18 February 2026