BALTIMORE, MD – Maryland State Police will lead an investigation involving Baltimore Police Deputy Commissioner Brian Nadeau, who has been suspended, according to Baltimore police officials. The Baltimore Police Department confirmed that the inquiry will be handled by state police after a department official said this week that command staff was the subject of allegations.
A department spokesperson said Nadeau’s police powers were suspended under Baltimore Police protocol while the investigation continues. Police have not said what the allegations are or who made them. The development puts one of the department’s top command officers under outside review while the agency keeps the details of the case private.
Baltimore police say the case involves a member of command staff
Earlier this week, a Baltimore police official said the department had been made aware of an investigation involving allegations against a member of its command staff. That disclosure came before the department publicly identified Nadeau as the person whose powers were suspended pending the outcome.
The department has not released the nature of the allegations, and no additional facts have been provided about the conduct under review. For now, the public record only shows that the matter is serious enough to trigger a suspension of police powers and a state-led investigation rather than an internal handling alone.
That limited disclosure has left key questions unanswered, including when the investigation began and what evidence prompted it. Baltimore police have not described any timeline beyond saying the matter is active and unresolved.
Nadeau joined Baltimore police after a long FBI career
Nadeau came to the Baltimore Police Department in 2019 after retiring from the FBI, where he served for 22 years. When he joined BPD, he oversaw the Public Integrity Bureau, the unit that handles investigations into allegations of police misconduct.
His background in federal law enforcement and internal accountability work made him a high-level figure inside the department. The move also placed him in a role connected to how the department reviews concerns about officer behavior and professional standards.
Over time, Nadeau’s responsibilities shifted, and he most recently oversaw the department’s Internal Affairs and officer discipline operations. Those duties put him close to the systems that examine complaints and determine consequences for police conduct.
His most recent duties covered Internal Affairs and discipline
Internal Affairs is the part of a police department that looks into complaints, while officer discipline deals with the consequences that can follow when misconduct is found. Nadeau’s position meant he had oversight of both areas in Baltimore’s command structure.
That context has drawn attention to the current case, even though officials have said the allegations do not involve the work he was doing in those divisions. The Baltimore Banner reported that Commissioner Richard Worley said the claims were unrelated to Nadeau’s oversight of internal investigations, discipline or any cases.
Baltimore police have not publicly expanded on that point, and the department has not said whether the state-led investigation will touch on any broader operational issues. For now, the confirmed facts are limited to his suspension and the transfer of the case to Maryland State Police.
Worley says the allegations do not involve his oversight duties
According to reporting by the Baltimore Banner, Commissioner Richard Worley has said the allegations against Nadeau do not involve his work overseeing internal investigations, discipline or any cases. That distinction suggests the department does not believe the complaint is tied directly to the core functions Nadeau supervised.
Even so, the public has not been told what the matter does involve. Baltimore police have also not said whether anyone else inside the department is being reviewed or whether the state inquiry is limited to one individual.
The lack of detail means the investigation is still at an early stage from the public’s perspective. Until authorities release more information, the case remains defined by the suspension, the involvement of state police and the department’s refusal to identify the allegations.
What happens next as state police take over the inquiry
With Maryland State Police now leading the investigation, the next step will depend on what investigators find and whether they decide to disclose any findings publicly. Baltimore police have not given a timetable for when the matter may be resolved.
The department’s decision to suspend Nadeau’s police powers means he will not be acting in that official capacity while the case is pending. That is a significant step for a deputy commissioner, reflecting the seriousness of any allegation involving a command-level officer.
For now, the Baltimore Police Department is leaving the matter to state investigators and has said little beyond confirming the suspension and the outside inquiry. No accusation has been described publicly, and officials have not said when or if more details will be released.
