Director Christopher Wray has named Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler Jr. as the assistant director of the Critical Incident Response Group at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. CIRG integrates the FBI’s tactical, negotiations, behavioral analysis, and crisis management resources into one cohesive structure. Mr. Wheeler most recently served as the special agent in charge of the Chicago Field Office.

Mr. Wheeler joined the FBI as a special agent in 1999. He was first assigned to the Sherman Resident Agency in Texas, a satellite of the Dallas Field Office, and worked a wide variety of criminal matters. In 2002, he was assigned counterterrorism duties in the Plano RA of the Dallas Field Office and also served with the North Texas Joint Terrorism Task Force.

In 2006, Mr. Wheeler joined the protection detail for the U.S. attorney general in Washington, D.C. In 2007, he began teaching new agents as an instructor at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. He also deployed to Kabul, Afghanistan, for several months in late 2009, working kidnapping matters as a member of the Major Crimes Task Force.

Mr. Wheeler joined CIRG’s Counter-Improvised Explosive Devices Section at Headquarters as a team leader in 2012. He was promoted to chief of the Counter-IED Readiness Unit in CIRG in 2015, and also served as the chief of the National Explosives Task Force.

In 2017, Mr. Wheeler was promoted to supervisory special agent over the National Capital Response Squad in the Washington Field Office. In 2018, he led a WFO international terrorism squad focused on the continental United States and Middle East-based threats. He was promoted in 2020 to assistant special agent in charge of WFO’s Mission Services Division, covering workforce development, applicants, security, and special inquiry background investigations.

In 2021, Mr. Wheeler returned to Headquarters as a section chief in the International Operations Division, focusing on global readiness and legal attaché operations in Europe, Eastern Europe, and Eurasia. He became chief of staff in the Cyber, Criminal, Response, and Service Branch in 2022. Mr. Wheeler was named special agent in charge of the Chicago Field Office in 2023.

Prior to joining the FBI, Mr. Wheeler was a special agent of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.