A familiar face is coming home, returning to his former job as Albany’s top cop.

Brendan Cox, who once served as the city’s police chief, has agreed to return on an interim basis.

The city of Albany will have a new mayor in January 2026. In an effort to maintain steadiness during a transitional 2025 election period, Mayor Kathy Sheehan brought back a man she believes will be able to hit the ground running.

One of the main focuses of Brendan Cox’s return will be to begin filling and retaining 60 vacancies on the Albany Police force. He plans to come up with a recruitment strategy that he acknowledges will continue long past his tenure, because 60 new people aren’t going to show up overnight.

Cox will replace Eric Hawkins, who is leaving to become the police commissioner in Warren, Michigan.

Hear some of Cox’s other goals for the city by watching the video of Dan Levy’s story.