Federico Garza, Jr. Named New Eagle Pass Police Department Chief
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2022
City of Eagle Pass, Texas City Manager George Antuna announced on Friday, January 14, 2022 at a press conference at City Hall that Federico Garza, Jr., current Police Chief at Eagle Lake, Texas, has been named the new Eagle Pass Police Department Chief after interviewing three candidates on Wednesday, January 12.
Antuna stated Garza has accepted the position of Eagle Pass Police Chief and is expected to start working in Eagle Pass on February 16, 2022.
The City of Eagle Pass hired an executive recruiting firm, Strategic Government Resources (SGR), to conduct an extensive search resulting in 18 candidates who applied for the Chief of Police position.
Antuna added Garza is originally from Laredo, Texas and is a retired Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Narcotics Officer (1981-2005), former Chief of the Webb County Sheriff’s Department (2009-2019), former City of Uvalde Police Chief (2005-2008), and currently the Eagle Lake, Texas Police Chief. Eagle Lake is in Colorado County, Texas.
Garza is a United States Navy Veteran and a graduate of Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and of the Leadership Command College at Sam Houston State University. He holds a Master Peace Officer Certificate and Instructor Certificate through the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer.
Antuna noted that as City Manager he is responsible for appointing or hiring an Eagle Pass Police Department Chief under the City Charter, although he and Mayor Rolando Salinas, Jr. participated in the interviews of the three finalists.
Antuna added that he and Garza are now in the process of pre-employment concerning the new appointment as Chief of Police.
Eagle Lake, Texas City Manager Melissa Landin stated “Chief Fred Garza is currently our Chief of Police. He is a valued and trustworthy member of our team with the utmost personal and professional ethics. Eagle Pass is blessed to have him. Wishing him, the Eagle Pass Police Department, and the City of Eagle Pass great success.”
