Los Angeles Police Department Assistant Chief Jorge A. Villegas plans to retire, the department confirmed Tuesday.
The 29-year LAPD veteran heads up the Office of Administrative Services, where he oversees personnel, recruitment, and training.
“Chief Villegas related his intent to retire from the department, and in the coming weeks Chief (Michel) Moore will name a successor,” said Officer Tony Im of the LAPD Media Relations Section.
Im said the department had no further details and that Moore, who took over as chief in June, would not be issuing a statement about Villegas’ impending retirement, which was first reported by NBC Los Angeles.
An exact retirement date was unclear, but Villegas is expected to step down before the end of the year, Channel 4 reported.
Villegas previously oversaw the Office of Operations, where he helped write and implement new policies and procedures, including updating the department’s Use of Force Policy, and helped prepare the operational component of the strategic plan “LAPD in 2020,” according to the department’s website. He has also served as a detective in the Abused Child Unit, and helped create the Sylmar Juvenile Task Force.
“From early in his career, Assistant Chief Villegas embraced a community-focused policing model, coordinating and attending town halls, and building relationships with the diverse communities that he has served,” according to the official LAPD profile of Villegas on the department’s website. “His experience includes serving as the chief of the San Fernando Valley, where he oversaw substantial expansion of community partnerships, including implementing a series of forums to reach out to underrepresented groups, and working with the business community to leverage resources to reduce crime.”