LYON, France, June 26, (AP): Brazilian police official Valdecy Urquiza won a crucial vote of confidence Tuesday toward becoming the next head of Interpol, the international police body, and its first non-Western chief after its executive committee selected him as its preferred candidate.
The 43-year-old, currently Interpol's vice president for the Americas, is on a key track to be selected by the Lyon, France-based organization's general assembly in Glasgow, Scotland on Nov 7. The assembly has always followed the recommendations for the choice of the secretary-general from the committee, which is currently made up of 13 members.
The Interpol secretary-general essentially runs the organization on a daily basis. Jürgen Stock of Germany, who has held the post since 2014, is not allowed under its rules to seek a third term.
Interpol, which has 196 member countries and celebrated its centennial last year, works to help national police forces communicate with each other and track suspects and criminals in fields like counterterrorism, financial crime, child pornography, cybercrime and organized crime.
The organization has never had a secretary-general who did not come from Europe or the United States.
Urquiza, who heads international cooperation for the Brazilian police force, holds degrees in law and public administration and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
The other finalists were Stephen Kavanagh of Britain, Interpol's current executive director for police services; Mubita Nawa of Zambia, administrative director of the African country's police service; and Faisal Shahkar of Pakistan, the head of the UN police division.
Urquiza and a board member from Britain - Kavanagh's home country - recused themselves for the committee decision.