A botched raid related to a murder investigation earlier this month led to the suspension of Galveston's police chief, officials said.
According to a City Hall statement released Monday, the police chief Doug Balli was placed on a 10 day administrative leave Friday due to an alleged failure of communication regarding the January 22 search.
Andre Mitchell, Assistant Police Chief, has been appointed acting chief of the department.
SWAT officers raided a home looking for a 17-year-old boy accused of killing 25-year-old Malik Dunn on January 20, officials said.
The teenager who was being sought by police doesn't live at the home and was later cleared of any involvement in the slaying, officials said.
During the search, officers determined that the suspect was not located in the residence, a city hall statement said Monday. After doing the search, the department received new information that contradicted the initial reason for the arrest. Balli, the chief, could not be reached for comment Monday afternoon at several publicly listed phone numbers.
Erika Rios, who lives in the house that was raided, told NBC affiliate KPRC of Houston that she and her children were asleep when police showed up.
At about 2 a.m., we were awakened by wooden pellets flying through our doors and sounds of the Galveston Police Department saying Come out with your hands up," Rios told the station.
Her daughter, Chelsea Peralez, said the whole experience left her shaken.
Peralez told KPRC that I was scared, screaming. I ended up going to my brother, asking what they were doing, and they kept shooting the wooden pellets. Rios could not be reached for comment Monday. The family's attorney, Tony Buzbee, said the family will speak publicly about the raid at a news conference Wednesday.
The mayor and city manager officials said they only learned about the raid through news reports on Friday.
The City Hall statement said that they launched an internal investigation to determine what communication failures delayed the notification to the City Administration.
The union representing Galveston police officers said it was supporting the chief, while acknowledging that its relationship with Balli is more often adversarial.
Balli would never allow an officer, specialized unit, or even a citizen to harm someone or violate the law, according to a union statement.
If there was a miscommunication issue, it will be addressed and addressed in the investigation, the statement continued. Chief Balli would never allow facts or actions to be hidden or concealed. Chief Balli is an upstanding citizen and leader who cares about the Island.