The Others

Criminal Investigative units within various Federal Agencies

There a number of smaller, often obscure, low profile agencies tucked into various federal organizations.  These are separate from the Office of Inspector General's (OIG) and often have narrow missions that typically align with their parent Executive Branch entity.  In the case of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - Criminal Investigation Division (CID), the mission predictably covers a litany of criminal cases related to companies and environmental pollution.  Conversely, few outside the profession could guess the day to day caseload within the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Office of Export Enforcement.   In some instances, the listed organizations are primarily uniformed based and security oriented but have a very small cadre of criminal investigators, such as the Federal Protective Service (FPS) or Pentagon Force Protection Agency (PFPA).  Others such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) operate in the virtually unknown tribal affairs environment.  Some agencies such as Customs & Border Protection (CBP) limit their criminal investigators to internal affairs type roles.  All of these organizations must be individually researched by the motivated applicant to truly understand what is offered.   

Each of these agencies are worthy of consideration as a career choice, however, their relative size and budgets can make entry level opportunities seem difficult to locate for the outside candidate.  Not to mention the fact that publicly available information can be virtually absent.  Although all of the agencies profiled on this page are comprised of 1811 federal law enforcement personnel, new criminal investigators should be prepared for a more "office-based" culture with operational restrictions that typically would not be found at the major agencies such as the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), or Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (ATF).  Additionally, each agency has its own unique mission and desired skill set for entry level applicants. 

Review this page to learn more about these hidden gems.  I have posted a myriad of articles, videos and website links to help you better understand and appreciate this often unrecognized side of federal law enforcement.  I will continue to update as information becomes available.     

For those of you wondering (or even potentially offended), these agencies have been consolidated due to the limited amount of publicly available information.  Some like EPA CID may have somewhat of an online presence.  Others, such as the Defense Contract Management Agency may give no other indication of their 1811 cadre outside a simple USAJobs vacancy announcement. Additionally, I will continue to add agencies as I become aware of them from various sources and can independently verify the 1811 position within that organization (Note:  It is common for people to mistake the federal detective position within the uniformed services for criminal investigators.).

Official Websites

Check out these below links to research the official websites.  Some of the sites are robust, others simply have an informational page about the parent agency.  All are a good starting point to learn more about the various positions. 

USMC CID

Due to their obscure structure within the U.S. Marine Corps Office of the Provost Marshal, the USMC Criminal Investigation Division (CID) does not appear to have a central website.  However, I did find articles about their new firearms rollout, negotiator training and a website run by a field level unit.  You can also read official guidance on their Civilian Law Enforcement Policy, which covers the 1811 Special Agent position.  There are limited civilian positions available in this relatively small investigative service.