Michael Steinbach Named Special Agent in Charge of FBI Jacksonville Division

Director Robert S. Mueller, III has named Michael B. Steinbach special agent in charge of the FBI’s Jacksonville Division. Mr. Steinbach most recently served as special assistant to associate deputy director Thomas Harrington at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Steinbach began his career as a special agent at the FBI in April 1995. His first assignment was to the Chicago Division, where he worked in the fugitive and violent crimes/major offenders programs. While on duty in Chicago, Mr. Steinbach also served as the division coordinator for the National Center for Analysis of Violent Crime and was a member of the SWAT team.

In 2003, Mr. Steinbach was promoted to the position of supervisor in the Counterterrorism Division at Headquarters. While in this role, he provided program management for FBI operations at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and in Afghanistan. In 2004, he was deployed to Afghanistan to serve as the deputy on-scene commander for FBI operations. In recognition of his actions while engaged with adversarial forces, Mr. Steinbach was awarded the FBI’s Shield of Bravery that year.

In 2005, Mr. Steinbach was promoted to assistant legal attaché for Tel Aviv, Israel, and in January 2006 he was appointed as legal attaché, Tel Aviv. In this role, Mr. Steinbach worked with the government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority on all FBI investigative matters, with an emphasis on national security issues. In 2008, Mr. Steinbach and his team received the Director’s Award for Special Achievement for their efforts in Israel.

In 2008, Mr. Steinbach was selected as supervisor of the Violent Crimes Task Force at the FBI Washington Field Office and returned to the United States to fulfill this new role. In this position, he led a multi-agency task force that was responsible for responding to all violent crimes in the nation’s capital and surrounding areas.

In 2009, Mr. Steinbach was promoted to assistant section chief for the International Terrorism Operations Section, Counterterrorism Division. He later served as acting section chief, during which time he provided program management for all FBI international terrorism investigations within the United States.

In May 2010, Director Mueller designated Mr. Steinbach as deputy director for Law Enforcement Services at the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center. In October of that year, he was appointed to his most recent post.

Mr. Steinbach earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aerospace engineering from the United States Naval Academy in 1988, after which he served as a naval aviator in the United States Navy. Mr. Steinbach is married and has four children.