Anthony Macaranas
GOVERNOR Arnold I. Palacios on Tuesday nominated acting Department of Public Safety Commissioner Anthony Iglecias Macaranas to be the new DPS chief.
Macaranas, who is serving “pro bono,” retired in 2022 after serving the department for 35 years.
In his appointment letter to Macaranas, the governor said he and Lt. Gov. David M. Apatang are confident that Macaranas is qualified and will be an asset to the CNMI. “Your willingness to serve our people is most appreciated,” the governor said.
Macaranas’ nomination requires the consent of the Senate.
In his letter to Senate President Edith Deleon Guerrero, the governor said he and the lt. governor are confident that Macaranas is qualified and will be an asset to the administration and the CNMI.
“We respectfully request your favorable action on this nomination,” the governor added.
A graduate of the Police Training Academy’s 6th Cycle, Macaranas joined the CNMI police force in September 1986 and eventually became the assistant police chief.
He was also assigned to various duties in the then-Division of Corrections, the Police Academy, the Patrol Section, the Traffic Section and the Explosive Response Team/Special Enforcement Action.
Macaranas likewise served in the U.S. Army’s Echo Company, 100th Battalion, 442nd 15 Infantry, and attended the U.S. Army Infantryman School in Fort Benning, Georgia. He was deployed to Iraq in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom III from Aug. 2004 to Jan. 2006.
If his nomination is confirmed by the Senate, he will succeed Clement R. Bermudes, who was asked by the governor to resign on Jan. 26, 2024, due to a “personnel matter.”
Bermudes was appointed by the governor as acting DPS commissioner on March 6, 2023, and his nomination was confirmed by the Senate on April 20, 2023.
