Eric Velez Named SAC of Los Angeles's Intelligence Division

Eric Velez has been named Special Agent in Charge of the Intelligence Division of the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office. Director Robert S. Mueller, III, appointed him to this position, which was recently created for Washington, New York, and Los Angeles due to the increased importance of intelligence matters within the FBI. Most recently, Mr. Velez served as the Deputy Director of the FBI's Terrorist Screening Center.

Mr. Velez entered on duty with the FBI in 1985 and served as a computer specialist until 1992, when he entered New Agents Training at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. Upon completion of training, he was assigned to the McAllen Resident Agency of the San Antonio Division in Texas, where he worked organized crime and drug investigations. In 1997, Mr. Velez was transferred to the Aguadilla Resident Agency of the San Juan Division in Puerto Rico. While there, Mr. Velez investigated public corruption matters.

In 2000, Mr. Velez received a promotional transfer to FBI Headquarters, where he served as a supervisory special agent in the drug section of the Criminal Investigative Division. Mr. Velez was detailed to the Drug Enforcement Administration, where he served for two years coordinating major drug trafficking investigations throughout the U.S.

In 2002, Mr. Velez was transferred to the Santa Ana Resident Agency of the Los Angeles Division, where he served as the organized crime and drug supervisor and later supervised the Orange County Joint Terrorism Task Force. He was promoted to Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC) of the Los Angeles Field Office Counterterrorism Program in 2004. During his tenure as ASAC, Mr. Velez oversaw the Orange County, Long Beach, and Inland Empire Joint Terrorism Task Forces. Mr. Velez was later assigned to the Long Beach Resident Agency of the Los Angeles Division, where he had executive oversight of the field office's Critical Infrastructure Protection Squad, Extraterritorial Counterterrorism Squad, Counterterrorism Threat Squad, and the Domestic Terrorism Squad.

While in Los Angeles, Mr. Velez co-chaired the Area Maritime Security Committee with the U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port and was responsible for helping to secure the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, the nation's two largest seaports. He also served as co-chair of the Airport Security Advisory Committee, which is responsible for the security of Los Angeles International Airport, as well as the airports in Burbank, Ontario, and Van Nuys, California. In 2006, Mr. Velez was appointed Deputy Director of the Terrorist Screening Center, a multi-agency center responsible for the U.S. government's consolidated approach to watchlisting aimed at preventing known or suspected terrorists from entering the U.S.

Mr. Velez graduated from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico with a Bachelor of Arts degree in management information systems. He is married and has three children.