A newly hired Baltimore police administrator was canned Tuesday after he was deemed a “person of interest” in an active homicide investigation.
The decision to fire Dana Hayes, 37, who was hired in a civilian role as the department’s chief of fiscal services on April 11, was also based on a past gun charge that wasn’t detected in a background check, WJZ-TV reported.
It wasn’t immediately clear what homicide Hayes may be connected to, but Police Commissioner Michael Harrison emphasized Wednesday that the man was not a suspect in the case and there was no warrant for his arrest, the station said.
Hayes was arrested on multiple gun violations in 2018 and added to the city’s gun offender registry a year later, according to the article.
“The HR department did a background investigation,” Harrison reportedly said. “It was missed.”
Mayor Brandon Scott issued a statement addressing the snafu Wednesday.
“Mayor Scott is committed to reforming HR practices throughout the City to ensure we hire only eligible and qualified candidates to fill these critical positions in city government,” it read, as the Democrat called for a “comprehensive review.”