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Video Transcript

Amy
March is Women's History Month. FBI Seattle Public Affairs sat down with a female special agent in our office who is also Hispanic to discuss her path into the bureau and how her experiences bring a unique perspective to the FBI. Due to privacy concerns about the types of cases she works, we are not including her name.

Steve
Thanks for sitting down with me today. Could you tell us about your experience in becoming a special agent?

Special Agent
Well, first of all, I'd like to state that I had no background in law enforcement or military or knew anyone that did. So when I made the decision to apply and told my family, they had a lot of concerns and questions. The thing was that my family and I were all immigrants from Mexico. I arrived in the U.S. at the age of seven, and after a decade, we became U.S. citizens. They wondered about the challenges that I would face as a woman of color in a predominantly male profession.

Special Agent
And truth be told, I had similar concerns. Would I perform as good as others in fitness tests? Would I be capable of learning how to use a gun properly? And as English was my second language, I was also always self-conscious about my writing. Would it be good enough for all the written tests? And it turns out the answer to all these questions was yes, because I wasn't going to do this alone.

Special Agent
On my own, I got a physical trainer, and to my surprise, I went from doing zero push ups to about 30. And at the FBI academy, they provide a lot of training on weapons handling, writing, law scenarios. I was in really good hands. And then after the academy, I was assigned to work violent crimes and crimes against children.

Steve
Was there a moment when you realized that you wanted to be an FBI special agent?

Special Agent
Yes. Yes, there was. I was volunteering as a math tutor with an organization who helped children experiencing homelessness. And since I could tutor algebra, I was asked if I could tutor one of the older kids but was advised that they were living in a domestic violence shelter. It was my first assignment, and I didn't know what to expect, but I accepted and I met my student and she was amazing.

Special Agent
And outside of our math sessions, we developed a relationship where she shared a little bit more about her circumstance and where she was in the fact that she was living in fear. And I knew in that moment that I wanted to help people that were in her situation, people like her. I also knew that I wanted to work at a place that required a college degree because I was the first in my family to have a college degree, and I wanted that to hold its value.

Special Agent
So after doing some research, I learned that the FBI had a Crimes Against Children unit, and therefore I raised my hand to join that cause.

Steve
What advice would you have for someone else interested in joining the FBI?

Special Agent
I would say for the younger crowd to definitely get a degree in something that you love. I would say to volunteer to be part of teams in whatever capacity that may be, to just make yourself very well rounded. For those who are already in the workforce and they're contemplating a change, for many agents, this is their second career.

Special Agent
For me, for example, I was a former accountant, and I joined the FBI at the age of 29. You are in one aspect, starting all over again, but also there is such a wide range of opportunities within the FBI and there's also a lot of people that are married and have children. And we're always trying to find ways to make that work for everyone.

Steve
Could you tell us about maybe the most challenging experience you've had as a special agent?

Special Agent
Yes, I think one of the most challenging things happened early on when I was assigned to work Violent Crimes Against Children, and that was in learning how to separate the emotional aspect of a situation to one that was a bit more pragmatic so that I could allow myself to focus on getting the job done. The first instance I came across when I was investigating the murder of a young man killed inside a federal installation.

Special Agent
The victim's mother quickly arrived, and her son's body had just been removed. But the pool of blood where he laid was still there. The mom was in shock, and I needed to ask her questions to find out who did this. And as I started asking her questions, she started to cry. And I got a knot in my throat, and my eyes got teary.

Special Agent
And I took a deep breath. And I acknowledged, you know, her pain. And I told her I wanted to find out who had done this. She was able to hold back her tears and share the information that we needed and that led us to arresting all of the individuals involved within a week and all of them went to prison.

Steve
As we mark Women's History Month, how have you found being a woman special agent to be beneficial during your career?

Special Agent
When I joined the FBI almost 13 years ago, I tended to be usually one of few women on the team. Let alone a woman of color who was a Spanish speaker. I appreciated the need for someone in my position to better connect with the community we served and just generally offer a wider range of perspectives. I did work one case that involved an immigrant that was a victim of a murder-for-hire case.

Special Agent
And initially, when I met with that victim and the family, they mentioned their concerns about even coming to the FBI. But their daughter had been kidnapped, and I expressed to them that they should come to the FBI when they're in a situation, which is exactly what they did. And we were there and we were going to find their daughter and we were going to help them and we we did just that.

Special Agent
And the victim was able to--she's very clever--she was able to escape the situation, went to the nearest law enforcement. I was able to tell the family, “Hey, your daughter is in this situation. We're going to offer all of the benefits.” We were able to transport her to a safer location. And in this situation, because I was an immigrant myself and I could relate and help them because they were victims of this crime and we helped them.

Special Agent
And that the family was very grateful and obviously so was the victim. And I felt very proud.

Steve
Thank you so much for sitting down with us today.

Special Agent
You're welcome.

Amy
Thank you for joining us to recognize Women's History Month. For more information about the FBI's Seattle field office, visit us online at fbi.gov/seattle or social media on X, Facebook, and Instagram. Thanks for tuning in.