The Minneapolis Police Department no longer employs a man who was previously charged but acquitted of assault while working at a department in Virginia.

The city of Minneapolis confirmed Thursday that Tyler Timberlake’s last day at the Minneapolis Police Department was Wednesday. He joined MPD on Jan. 9.

RELATED: Activists demand Minneapolis Police fire former Virginia officer who used stun gun, struck and knelt on unarmed Black man

After social justice activists learned of his hiring this spring, they demanded he be fired. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said in April that he was “extremely concerned about what I have just learned pertaining to the hiring of this individual.”

Timberlake, a former Fairfax County, Virginia, police officer, was charged with assault for using a stun gun and kneeling on an unarmed Black man days after George Floyd’s murder. However, a jury ultimately acquitted him in March 2022.

After the backlash, O’Hara said he directed an investigation to be conducted regarding Timberlake’s hiring. As of last month, the city confirmed that was still ongoing.

While a spokesperson for Minneapolis confirmed Timberlake’s departure, the city didn’t specify if he was fired or quit, noting that’s not public data under state law.

The Minneapolis Police Federation released the following statement after Timberlake’s departure:

“It is truly unfortunate Chief O’Hara released Officer Tyler Timberlake from employment from the police department. Chief O’Hara was in the final interview of Timberlake and was fully aware of his history. During his final interview, he was assured by Chief O’Hara he would be okay, if he did good work. This is clearly not the case.

The hiring of Timberlake was not an issue until an April 19th news article created a politically charged narrative of his hiring, which, grew in intensity, when Chief O’Hara stated “I am extremely concerned about what I have just learned pertaining to the hiring of this individual who is currently in agency training and yet to be deployed into service”.

By all MN POST standards, nothing precludes Timberlake from being a peace officer in the state of Minnesota. He was acquitted on all charges in Virginia and remained employed for nearly three years after the incident. Releasing an officer with nearly 1,800 hours of training, years of prior experience and is qualified to work in the state of Minnesota, seems counterproductive as the police department continues to struggle to meet staffing needs and has approximately 42% less sworn officers, than what it had 3 years ago.“