The fire and police chiefs in Federal Heights are out.
An internal email obtained by Denver7 Investigates from the city to staff, sent at 6:40 p.m. Friday, said Chief of Police Robert Grado and Fire Chief Marc Mahoney are "no longer with the city" and implied the two chiefs resigned. Meanwhile, a release from the fire and police unions said that neither of them resigned.
The unions' statement also said that neither were informed of the personnel changes.
"These firings are totally unacceptable to both Unions," a joint statement from firefighters union Local 4222 and police union Lodge 77 said. "The manner in which this was conducted is incredibly disrespectful to both Chiefs, Police Officers, and Firefighters. We do not agree with the decision made by the City Manager and City Attorney. We remain steadfast in our support for Chief Mahoney and Chief Grado. We will be submitting a request to state officials for a full investigation into these terminations."
The city attorney and city manager did not respond to Denver7's request for comment by the time of publication. The union said Grado and Mahoney declined to comment.
The email said Deputy Chief Karl Ballard has been appointed interim police chief, and Finance Director Tim Weitzman will be overseeing the fire department.
Earlier this year, the city's first responders unanimously issued a vote of no confidence in the city manager.
This is a developing story.
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