Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy has tapped George Nader, a former Metro Transit Police assistant chief, to be the county’s next top cop.
Ms. Braveboy named Chief Nader on Wednesday after former Chief Malik Aziz was selected as one of three finalists in the nationwide search for a new police leader in Phoenix, Arizona.
Ms. Braveboy, a Democrat who was recently sworn in as county executive, said Chief Nader will bring a “renewed commitment to community policing” and a sense of what officers at all levels of the force are going through “because he has done it.”
“Chief Nader is a strategic thinker, a compassionate leader, and a deep believer in community-centered policing,” Ms. Braveboy said Wednesday evening at a press conference. “He understands that public safety is not just about enforcement. It’s about trust, transparency and collaboration.”
She said Chief Nader spent 20 years working his way up the ranks of the Prince George’s County Police Department. He oversaw recruitment and human trafficking prevention before becoming a deputy chief who took command of the department’s homeland security and forensic sciences bureaus.
Chief Nader, who grew up in Prince George’s, left the department in 2016 to join Metro Transit Police, where he ran the department’s Homeland Security Bureau.
“I am a man of faith. I do believe that the Lord puts our path in front of us. It’s up to us to take that path. I believe he put me here with such a talented team,” Chief Nader, 54, said during the press event. “From the bottom of my heart, county executive, thank you for the opportunity. I will not let you down.”
The chief said he will bring a “community first” vision to the department with a goal of boosting trust between the people and the police.
“Trust in law enforcement is critical,” he said. “There’s no way a police department can be successful or provide public safety to a community that doesn’t trust them.”
Ms. Braveboy, who won a special election this month to fill former County Executive Angela Alsobrooks’ seat after she joined the U.S. Senate, also said the PGPD will return to using police districts.
Former Chief Aziz had run the department since 2021, having come from the Dallas Police Department, where he rose from a patrol officer to deputy chief during a nearly 30-year career.
Ms. Braveboy thanked former Chief Aziz for his time in the county.
“We truly wish him the best in his future endeavors, and we know that wherever he lands, he is going to make significant contributions,” she said.
