Our Department

Cecily Barker was born and raised in Albuquerque, NM. After attending college out of state, she returned to Albuquerque and joined the Albuquerque Police Department in 2004.

After graduating the police academy, Chief Barker served in the Field Services Bureau from 2004-2012. During that time, she held  collateral duties of Gang Suppression Officer, Crisis Intervention Officer and Field Training Officer. She was promoted to Sergeant in 2012 where she served in the Field Services Bureau and later in the Violent Crimes Division as the FASTT, Missing Person and Cold Case Sergeant. She was promoted to Lieutenant in 2017. As a Lieutenant, Chief Barker served in the Juvenile/Property Crime Division and the Criminalistics Division. She was promoted to Commander in 2020 and served as the Northwest Area Commander and later as the Chief of Staff.  In 2021, she was promoted to Deputy Chief of the Investigative Bureau where she lead the Criminal Investigations Division, Investigative Services Division and the Scientific Evidence Division. In October of 2023, Chief Barker took over the Field Services Bureau where she oversaw the departments Area Commands.

Chief Barker has an Associate’s degree in Criminal Justice and a Bachelor’s Degree in Justice Administration. She is also a graduate from Police Executive Leadership Institute- PELI IX and the Police Executive Training Program.

George Vega began his career with the Albuquerque Police Department in 1999, serving in both the Field Services Bureau and the Investigative Bureau. He was promoted to sergeant in 2008, where he led the Auto Theft and Gang Unit. In 2016, he advanced to lieutenant, overseeing operations within the Field Services Bureau.
After retiring from the department, Vega returned in 2022 to take on the role of Criminal Investigative Commander. He was promoted in 2023 to Deputy Chief of the Investigative Bureau, where he now leads complex investigations and drives initiatives to enhance law enforcement capabilities across the city.

Interim Deputy Chief Michael Hernandez graduated from the Albuquerque Police Department’s 92nd Cadet Class in 2005. During the early years of his career, he served in the Field Services Bureau as a Patrol Officer, held a collateral assignment as a Gang Suppression Officer, and was a member of the Emergency Response Team.

In 2009, he became a NITe Detective within the Investigations Bureau, Property Crimes Division. In 2011, he was assigned to the K-9 Unit within the Special Operations Division, Tactical Section. In 2018, he was promoted to Sergeant and continued serving as the K-9 Unit Supervisor. After more than a decade with the K-9 Unit, he transitioned to the Investigative Services Division, where he served on the Gun Violence Street Team.

In 2022, Deputy Chief Hernandez was promoted to Lieutenant and assigned to the Field Services Bureau. In 2023, he was promoted to Commander and served as the Executive Officer to the Chief of Police. In 2025, he was promoted to the rank of Chief of Staff. In this role, he served as a key executive advisor to the Chief of Police, overseeing strategic initiatives, organizational management, interdepartmental coordination, and executive-level project and policy implementation.

Currently, Deputy Chief Hernandez oversees the Support Services Bureau.

To complement his professional experience, Deputy Chief Hernandez graduated with honors from Wayland Baptist University and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and is a proud graduate of the FBI National Academy, Class #288.

Deputy Chief Luke C. Languit graduated from the Albuquerque Police Department's 97th Cadet Class. As a Patrol Officer in the Field, he worked the graveyard shift in the Southeast Area Command and was a member of the Emergency Response Team (ERT).  Deputy Chief Languit made detective and worked general investigations and undercover investigations. Promoting to Sergeant, Deputy Chief Languit was assigned to the Special Investigations Division supervising the Central Narcotics Unit, APD HIDTA Initiative, the Meth Unit, and the VICE Unit.

As a Lieutenant, he was assigned to the Special Operations Division overseeing the SWAT Team, K9 Unit, Bomb Squad, and Crisis Negotiators. Deputy Chief Languit promoted to Commander overseeing the Property Crimes Division and the Special Investigations Division. Deputy Chief Languit enjoyed being a part of the department’s Peer Support Team, focusing on mental health and wellbeing for our sworn and civilian personnel. Deputy Chief Languit has also worked with the Asian and Pacific Islander community, establishing a relationship between AAPI and the Albuquerque Police Department.

Deputy Chief Languit graduated with honors from the University of New Mexico earning a degree in Political Science and Criminology.   

Jeffery Barnard began his career with the Albuquerque Police Department in 2008, serving in the Field Services Bureau, where he worked as a Field Training Officer and later as a Field Training Sergeant. He then moved into the Investigative Bureau as a Sergeant, supervising the Organized Crime Unit and the Strategic Criminal Intelligence Unit. Promoting to Lieutenant, he was assigned to the Investigative Services Division, where he oversaw the Narcotics and Career Criminal Section.

 He later returned to the Investigative Services Division as Commander, overseeing the division's Narcotic Section, Property Crimes Section, and Career Criminal Section for two years and serving concurrently as the Region 1 HIDTA Commander. He went on to take command of the Criminal Investigations Division, overseeing the Violent Crimes and Special Victims Sections. He was subsequently appointed Interim Chief of Staff, overseeing strategic initiatives, organizational management, interdepartmental coordination, and executive-level project and policy implementation.

Eric started his career with APD in 1990. He served as an officer in the Field Services Bureau, the Domestic Abuse Response Team, and the Street Gang Unit. He was promoted to Sergeant in 1998 and was assigned to the Field Services Bureau during this time. In 2004, he was promoted and served as a Lieutenant in the Field Services Bureau and the Operations Review Division. He was promoted to Commander in 2007 and served in the Property Crimes, Metro Traffic, and Special Investigations Divisions. In 2013, he was promoted to Deputy Chief of the Investigations Bureau.  In 2017, he was tasked by Mayor Keller with creating and overseeing the Compliance Bureau.  He has served as the Superintendent of the Police Reform Bureau since 2022.