Fady Dagher, director of the Montreal City Police Service, in ceremonial uniform. (Credit: SPVM media division)
BEIRUT — Fady Dagher, the Lebanese-Canadian who has been at the head of the Montreal police service for three years, was elected Tuesday as president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP).
"The members of the CACP elected Director Dagher, from the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), during the second part of the Association's Annual General Meeting, held as part of the 121st annual CACP Summit in Edmonton, Alberta," the association states on its website.
Dagher, 58, succeeds Commissioner Thomas Carrique of the Ontario Provincial Police, whose term as president began in 2024. The CACP is a national organization supporting police chiefs.
Appointed in December 2022 as head of the Montreal police service after posting record results for the Longueuil agglomeration and its five cities, he was the first Montreal police chief from an immigrant background, more specifically from the "visible minorities." His revolutionary approach to policing, which advocates for a culture of closer ties with communities, has made him popular and even famous.
According to the CACP, Director Dagher has distinguished himself through "a leadership approach based on innovation, collaboration, and community engagement" throughout his more than three-decade career. He has "championed initiatives aimed at strengthening public trust, improving community safety, and fostering meaningful partnerships with diverse communities."
"As president of the CACP, Fady Dagher will help guide the Association’s efforts to promote innovative and inclusive police leadership, support public safety priorities, and ensure the perspectives of police leaders are represented in important national debates affecting communities across Canada," the association adds.
"I am deeply moved by the confidence that CACP members have placed in me. Police services face increasingly complex challenges, but their work also presents many opportunities to strengthen trust, foster innovation, and work more closely with the communities we serve," the new president said in remarks relayed by the website.
"I look forward enthusiastically to the opportunity to work alongside police leaders across the country to help shape the future of our profession and to continue advancing public safety for all Canadians."
After growing up in Abidjan, Dagher moved to his adopted city of Montreal at the age of 17 and joined the police force in 1992, before rising through the ranks to become chief of police for the Longueuil agglomeration and its five cities, where, during his six years of work for the region, he posted record results that led him to take the helm of the Montreal police.
