Hartford Police Chief David Rosado will be stepping down and taking a leadership role at Pratt & Whitney, according to the office of Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin.
Rosado’s last day will be Friday, April 12 and the city expects to conduct a national search for a new police chief.
Rosado, Hartford’s first Latino police chief, has been in the position for a little over a year.
He was born in Hartford, graduated from UConn, and rose through the ranks of law enforcement, serving as a lieutenant colonel with State Police, before taking on the job as chief in Hartford.
“As someone who was born and raised in Hartford, it has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as our Police Chief,” Rosado said in a statement. “I have always been committed to public service, but after twenty-two years, this opportunity to take a leadership role at Pratt & Whitney is one that I could not turn down for my family. I made this decision with mixed emotions, but as anyone who knows me understands, my family is central to everything I do, and they have supported my career in public service for more than two decades.”
Mayor Bronin said the city was “fortunate to recruit someone with Chief Rosado’s combination of experience and deep roots in our community, and I’m grateful to Chief Rosado for his service to Hartford.”
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Assistant Chief Jason Thody will serve as interim chief of the Hartford Police Department.
“It’s an honor to be asked to serve as Interim Chief of the Hartford Police Department,” Thody said in a statement. “I have proudly served the City of Hartford for twenty-three years, and I am looking forward to continuing to work with Mayor Bronin, the City Council, the men and women of the department, and the community in this new role. It has been a privilege to work with Chief Rosado, and on behalf of our department, we wish him every success as he transitions to the private sector after such a long career in public service.”
The Hartford Police Union released a statement on Thursday afternoon.
"We wish him success in future endeavors," Hartford Police Union president John Szewczyk said in a statement.
