City appoints interim El Paso police chief after Greg Allen's death

City officials appointed Peter Pacillas, an assistant police chief, as the interim El Paso police chief.

Pacillas has been serving as assistant police chief since 2009, and he graduated from the El Paso Police Academy in 1988.

In an emailed statement Friday afternoon, City Manager Tommy Gonzalez and Deputy City Manager Mario D’Agostino both had words of raise for Pacillas.

“I’m confident Chief Pacillas will demonstrate thoughtful and effective decision-making as well as strong leadership in action. These traits have worked well for him in the past and they will guide him as he leads the uniformed and civilian men and women of our police force," Gonzalez said.

More:El Paso police Chief Greg Allen: 'He loved his officers'

“Pacillas is a great example of the gifted leaders within our successful talent pipeline that has embraced our organization’s leadership development opportunities, which inspire collaboration and alignment and integration with our service delivery,” said D’Agostino.

Pacillas was appointed following the death of longtime Police Chief Greg Allen last month.

Allen was El Paso's first Black police chief and the city's longest serving chief, being at the helm for nearly 15 when he died unexpectedly on Jan. 17. He was 71.

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This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Interim El Paso police chief named after Greg Allen's death