February 12, 2019

Eric B. Smith Named Special Agent in Charge of the Cleveland Field Office

FBI Director Christopher Wray has named Eric B. Smith as special agent in charge of the Cleveland Field Office. Mr. Smith most recently served as special assistant for FBI Director Wray.

Mr. Smith entered on duty with the FBI in 1999 and was first assigned as a special agent in the Wichita Resident Agency, Kansas City Field Office, where he worked multiple programs including violent crime, counterterrorism, and counterintelligence. In 2005, he transferred to the Counterterrorism Division at FBI Headquarters.

In 2008, Mr. Smith was selected to serve as the supervisor for the Cleveland Field Office’s counterterrorism squad and Joint Terrorism Task Force. Two years later, he was assigned to be the FBI’s senior representative to a counterterrorism task force headquartered in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and forward deployed to Bagram, Afghanistan.

Mr. Smith returned to the Cleveland Field Office in 2013, where he was promoted to assistant special agent in charge over counterterrorism and cyber matters, as well as multiple resident agencies. He later assumed oversight of the intelligence program.

In 2015, Mr. Smith assumed the role of chief of staff to the FBI deputy director, where he served before entering his assignment as special assistant to the Director in 2016.

Prior to his FBI career, Mr. Smith served as an officer in the U.S. Army, primarily in airborne rapid deployment forces at Fort Bragg. He graduated from the U.S. Army Airborne School and the U.S. Army Ranger School. He served as a battalion intelligence officer, an airborne rifle platoon leader, a company executive officer, and a company commander. His military awards and decorations include the U.S. Army Ranger Tab, the Senior Parachutist Badge, the Royal Australian Parachutist Badge, and the German Schutzenschnur (shooting badge).

Mr. Smith graduated from Eastern Kentucky University in 1991. In 2009, he received his master’s degree in homeland security studies from the Naval Postgraduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security in Monterey, California.

Mr. Smith reported to the Cleveland Field Office on February 4, 2019.