Minneapolis police chief resigns after allegedly interfering with probe into his conduct

Minneapolis police chief Brian O’Hara, who took over the department in the wake of George Floyd’s death, resigned Tuesday after an investigation found that he had interfered with an probe into his conduct.

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Mayor Jacob Frey said he accepted O’Hara’s resignation.

“This is not about being intolerant of mistakes — everyone makes mistakes, including me,” Frey said at a Tuesday evening news conference. “But what I can’t allow is a breach of trust. When you serve as chief of the Minneapolis Police Department, trust is not secondary to the job; it is the job. And when trust is broken, it becomes extremely difficult to continue leading effectively.”

The matter began last year when the mayor’ office received an anonymous complaint alleging that O’Hara had engaged in sexual relationships with city employees. An outside investigation concluded several months ago and found that the allegations unsubstantiated.

A subsequent inquiry, however, an additional investigation found that O’Hara “interfered with the investigation process,” Frey said.

An investigative report obtained by NBC News shows that O’Hara intentionally deleted a contact card from his city-issued cellphone “in an effort to shield that evidence of connection between Chief O’Hara and employee 2 from investigators.” According to the report the contact card was present on his phone on May 1, 2025, but was removed by May 7. It was the only contact card deleted, and investigators found no technical explainination for its dissaparrance. O’Hara denied deleting the contact in interviews conducted in June and April.

O’Hara was also found to have discussed the original investigation after being given explicit instructions not to do so, the report states. Investigators said O’Hara told an employee that his phone had been taken as part of the probe.

Frey said the interference does not alter the outcome of the initial investigation, but nonetheless constitutes “a breach of trust.” He said he had informed O’Hara that disciplinary action — up to and including termination — was forthcoming, and that O’Hara chose to resign instead.

In a formal letter, the mayor said O’Hara would be receiving a written reprimand for “serious misconduct.”

The Minneapolis Police Department did not immediately return a request for comment on Wednesday.

Assistant police chief Katie Blackwell will serve as acting chief effective immediately, Frey said.