Interim leaders have been named to temporarily fill the soon-to-be vacant police and fire chief jobs in the city.
The Rockford Board of Fire and Police Commission on Wednesday appointed Assistant Deputy Chief Randy Berke to interim Rockford police chief while Division Chief Robert Vertiz has been named interim Rockford fire chief.
Berke, 50, is a 27-year veteran of the Rockford Police Department and serves as assistant deputy chief over police District 2, where he plans, assigns and supervises patrol operations; develops goals for staffing, crime trends and operational procedures; and reviews citizen complaints and misconduct investigations.
Berke is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and has been a member of the SWAT team for 24 years. He’ll begin his new job on Saturday.