Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder resigns to take up neighboring agency role

A prominent spokesman for the Minneapolis Police Department has resigned.

John Elder, the director for police information, has resigned his position "to take a leadership role in a neighboring law enforcement agency," according to a Thursday announcement from the city of Minneapolis.

The city announced the resignation went into effect Wednesday. An officer with the Minneapolis Police Department will oversee public information duties in the interim.

Last year, the Minneapolis City Council voted to eliminate the former public information officer role from the city’s police department and instead to give responsibility to the city communications department in releasing information to the public.