A recently promoted Chicago Police Department official died in an apparent suicide.
Deputy Chief of Criminal Networks Dion Boyd, 57, died on Monday. His body was found at the Homan Square police facility Tuesday morning on the west side with a gunshot wound, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Police Superintendent David Brown said he was “heartbroken” by Boyd’s death, which he referred to as a suicide in a press conference. He also said that “the job of a Chicago police officer is not easy, especially at a time when there is intensified stress.”
“Deputy Chief Boyd was a man who commanded respect, and our deepest condolences go out to his family and friends, particularly his two sons, who are now grieving over this unimaginable loss. Please keep his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers,” Brown said in a statement.
Boyd worked in the Police Department for more than three decades. During that time, he served the city’s south side as commander of Area 1 and the 2nd District. He was sworn in as deputy chief of criminal networks on July 15.
Boyd is at least the second Chicago law enforcement officer apparently to end his own life in 2020. A 2017 review of the Chicago Police Department found that suicide is a “significant problem” given that the officers’ suicide rate was more than 60% higher than the national average.
