Columbus police: 100,000 dash cam files accidentally deleted

COLUMBUS (AP) — Columbus police say they’re investigating an employee’s accidental deletion of about 100,000 dashboard camera video files.

The police agency in central Ohio says its Columbus Police Technical Services Bureau learned last week of the mass deletion of the files, which happened May 8.

Police Chief Kim Jacobs says most of the files were from 2015. She says police are investigating whether the files can be retrieved.

She says the impact on pending cases is unclear. Officials are trying to determine what videos may have contained evidence, and whether they had already been transferred to detectives’ or prosecutors’ files.

Jacobs also says about one in four of the files involve recordings that wouldn’t be relevant to criminal matters.