The Capitol Hill Police Board appointed a new acting chief of police for the agency after the resignation of its previous chief after the violent turmoil that hit the US Capitol.
A statement on the agency’s website indicated that Yogananda Pittman had been appointed acting chief of police.
His appointment follows the resignation of US Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund, whose response to the violence on Wednesday was heavily criticized by lawmakers in the hours after the incident.
Sund said on Thursday that he would resign starting January 16, after which he would move to sick leave status and exhaust the accumulated allowance before leaving the police. But the website of the United States Capitol Police indicates that Pittman was appointed acting chief on Friday.
Information on how Pittman was selected due to the resignations of two members of the Police Council, the House and Senate arms sergeants, was not apparent and the agency did not immediately return a request for comment from The Hill.
A veteran of almost 20 years in the Capitol police force, Pittman has served as the agency’s deputy chief since 2018.
Five people died, including one of the agency’s officials, during Wednesday’s violence, while lawmakers, officials and journalists were forced to huddle in fear for their lives in safe areas around the Capitol. The scene unfolded after President Trump
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In a statement after the attack, Sund described the scene as “unlike any I have experienced in my 30 years of law enforcement here in Washington, DC” and emphasized that his department was prepared for citywide protests as a result of electoral certification.