[2014] Eyes Pried Open: Rookie FBI Agent

by Vincent Sellers

  Another unexpected and despicable occurrence that I observed was a kidnapping scenario unfolding in which multiple parties would independently contact the victim’s family with ransom demands. Unless the kidnappers were willing to provide some type of proof of life, there would be no way to know who the “real” kidnappers were, versus other parties who had simply heard about the kidnapping and were attempting to make a profit. That disgusted me even more than did the genuine kidnappers; I had never imagined how low people would stoop to make “easy” money.

  While each case was different, one area that consistently provided difficulty throughout each kidnapping ordeal was managing the family members’ expectations. If a random person on the street is polled, “What happens when a kidnapping gets reported to the FBI?”, he or she would likely respond, “The FBI swoops in with high-tech devices, helicopters, and teams of people in both suits and tactical gear who are standing by 24/7 to rescue kidnapping victims.” In a world that has further evolved even beyond the forensic brilliance shown in Silence of the Lambs, most citizens think that with a cotton swab, a chemical test, and with some fingerprinting, a high-tech computer network can somehow provide an immediate answer on the location of a victim and the identify of a kidnapper. Surely the hardest part for the FBI is just getting a recovery team down in a well, or hiking to a remote cabin to save a helpless little girl from “the bad guy.” The fact that the FBI has absolutely no jurisdiction in Mexico amazes the families of kidnapping victims; they are shocked that the FBI cannot subpoena phone records, monitor phone calls, or perform any law enforcement duties in Mexico. This also puzzles victims of other crimes that occur in Mexico but are reported to US authorities; in 95% of these cases, there is nothing the FBI can do to help. Mexico is a completely separate country. It is not a state within the US, although many kidnapping victim’s families truly seemed not to grasp that concept; some families appeared to think of the border as nothing more significant than a toll booth on the highway.

  Another common misconception is that the FBI has a stash of ransom money available to give to kidnappers. That is not the case. If a family member can only come up with $100 for a $100,000 ransom, the FBI will not pay the difference. The FBI does have access to marked bills that can be exchanged with ransom money provided by the victim’s families, but that is the limit of the help the FBI can offer related to ransom money, even if it is likely the money will be recovered. Ultimately, the choice to pay a ransom demand comes down to the family. The FBI will not decide that for the family, and the FBI’s level of involvement is largely left up to the family. If the family wants to pay a ransom with no FBI involvement, they are free to do so. Of course the FBI wants to be involved so that the criminals can be caught, but this sometimes conflicts with the notion that family members often have that the best odds of getting their loved one back is to have the FBI out of the picture.

  Part of the standard protocol when working a kidnapping investigation is to obtain criminal background checks on everybody who is associated with a kidnapping, including the victim and the victim’s family members. Once the victim’s criminal history is obtained, the FBI has an indicator of the type of trouble that the victim may be in. Frequently, a victim will have a lengthy criminal history, with drug related activity. But regardless of criminal history, the FBI treats every kidnapping with the same sense of urgency, and everyone gets the same treatment. In San Diego, the FBI agents who worked kidnappings operated independently from the drug investigations squad; even if the kidnapping victim is rescued but believed to be involved with drug trafficking, the FBI is only concerned with the safety and recovery of the victim. Any intelligence or evidence obtained during the course of a kidnapping investigation can legally be used against the kidnappers or kidnap victim by prosecutors, but most of my experience with kidnappings was focused solely on the victim and victim’s family members.

  During the process of working kidnappings with criminal elements in the United States that the FBI could actively pursue, I learned about the difficulties for FBI agents to obtain any form of electronic surveillance, including the tactical and legal ability to listen in on phone conversations and to see where phone calls are originating from and going to. Even obtaining a subscriber’s name for a cell phone number required a subpoena from a court, which proved to be a cumbersome and difficult process to navigate, especially when the need usually surfaced during weekend or evening hours. I found myself often turning to database searches, including public “Google” searches, which provided the fastest response and often the best information available. In direct contrast to the public’s perception, the FBI does not have any magical data or information pipeline to obtain citizens’ personal information based on a phone number. There are some basic tools such as the indexed information found in the FBI’s files, but this information is primarily based on interviews and outdated written reports. The FBI also has access to credit bureau information, but this is a far cry from what most people would expect. The FBI has to go through the appropriate legal mechanisms to obtain information; the FBI does not flip a magical switch and start listening to the “bad guys.” The difficulty in obtaining electronic information reaches nearly impossible levels for criminal activity in Mexico. As a result, the FBI would sometimes provide tape recorders to kidnap victims’ families with the instruction to record the kidnappers if they called. This was an embarrassing solution that would have seemed outdated twenty years ago, and in today’s electronic world this seemed to be about as helpful as telling someone to bring a pocketknife to a gunfight. The FBI agents who fight traditional crime are often fighting with their hands tied behind their backs.

  On one occasion a white female in her early 20s had gone missing in Mexico, and her father contacted the FBI for help. There had been a call placed from Mexico to him in which the caller had hung up without speaking, and he was greatly concerned about her safety and was convinced that she been kidnapped. Serving as the case agent, I immediately began the process of working the telephone company to begin tracking incoming and outgoing telephone numbers for the victim’s cell phone. Minutes can make a difference early on with a kidnapping investigation, and I wanted to do everything I could to help. I had yet to see a kidnapping situation in which the victim was completely innocent and not tied in with criminal activity, but this case had the opportunity to be the first. In addition, I really felt bad for the father, who was as worried as a parent can be about the safety of his child. In an emergency situation like this one, a telephone company legally must work with the FBI to provide information with the agreement that a court order authorizing the activity will be provided within a twenty-four hour period. I began to work with the United States Attorney's Office to get the appropriate paperwork, a court order. As the minutes passed, other agents who were assisting me began doing a background check on the victim and learned that the victim was currently residing at a rehabilitation center somewhere on the coast in central California. The strong possibility began to sink in that the victim had just walked out of rehab and simply headed down to Tijuana for drugs.

  My intuition was right. A couple of hours after the entire incident had begun, the father received a telephone call from his daughter saying that she was fine and that she had just gone down to Tijuana for “fun” and was driving back up to the Los Angeles area. The father was appreciative for the FBI’s assistance, and was embarrassed and sorry for the trouble he had caused. Indeed, he and his daughter had created more legal trouble for the FBI than I could have imagined. We had begged the phone company to provide sensitive information for one of their customers with the promise of a court order for an emergency situation. The phone company provided phone records, but with the promise of swiftly receiving a court order authorizing them to do so. While the emergency situation had gone away, the phone company’s requirement to receive a court order had not. Unfortunately, the federal judge who was to provide the court order passed
word back to us that he could not issue the court order in good faith since the facts of the case had changed and since there was no longer a question about the victim’s immediate safety. The problem was that the phone company was understandably sensitive about this type of action since there were frequent headlines in the media about telephone companies doing illegal activities and spying on customers without court orders, sensationalized headlines that continue to dominate the news cycle when there are no other major stories to follow. While the details of this event should have been straightforward to even the most suspicious conspiracy theorists, a headline of “Phone Company Continues to Provide Customer Information Illegally” could have easily become a reality.

  This particular issue for my case was escalated to the highest management levels in the FBI San Diego Division, and for several days following this kidnapping incident I had to provide numerous records and documentation that explained why we had obtained information from a telephone company and why we were not going to be able to get a court order to legally authorized this activity. Being a process-oriented person, I immediately saw that there was a flaw in the overall process for obtaining the court order. No individuals throughout the process had acted incorrectly, yet the end result was not satisfactory. To remedy the situation, I drafted a letter to the telephone company, and our Special Agent in Charge of the San Diego Division personally signed and sent the letter. Although this document was not a court order, it did explain that the FBI had done everything within its power to obtain a court order, but that the judge was simply unable to provide this since the facts of the case had changed. In summary, a simple event of a kidnapping false alarm chewed up a number of hours for valuable FBI resources, created work for US Attorney's Office, and wasted the time of a federal judge.

  I found myself again seeing that the reality of being an FBI agent did not at all match up with my expectations. The majority of my time as an agent was spent trying to navigate a complex process of paperwork and legal requirements that was not only stressful, but also impeded my ability to do my job effectively. The concerns that people have of the FBI abusing its power now seem almost ridiculous. The FBI is made of responsible agents who follow the law and are in the profession for the right reasons, and the paranoid thought that many share of agents having time to sit around and listen in on routine conversations of citizens without reason is absolutely preposterous. If the general public knew how much the FBI’s powers are limited and how thin resources are spread, there would be much less fear about overreach and abuse by the FBI.

  CHAPTER 36

  Expect the Unexpected

  My squad, a catch-all squad known for pursuing violent criminals and major offenders, had a reputation for not being afraid to roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty. As a result, San Diego VCMO (Violent Crimes and Major Offenders) agents were often the first to lead the charge to resolve whatever urgent issue might arise at the FBI office. One morning I was sitting at my desk, sipping my coffee, and working on some paperwork when I heard a page from the overhead speakers for “anyone to pick up on Squad 11.” Squad 11 was my squad. That usually meant serious trouble had arisen, such as a kidnapping, a bank robbery, or an assault on a federal officer. But this case was different; after picking up the phone and talking to our operator, I discovered that immediate help was needed to arrest somebody who was physically in the building. This day was certainly not shaping up to be like a normal day in my old corporate job. In the FBI, I truly could “expect the unexpected.”

  As a standard operating protocol, the FBI does a high-level background check on every person allowed into an FBI facility. The San Diego office was undergoing a remodeling project which employed several contracted workers. These workers were subject to the same check that anyone else is subject to when entering the closely guarded grounds of the FBI. One of the workers had an outstanding arrest warrant issued by the State of California for a non-violent crime. Regardless of the nature of the arrest warrant, anyone who is wanted by law enforcement should be considered dangerous. Fortunately, the background check was done while the subject waited in the lobby; however, we knew we had to act quickly to ensure the safety of the office and any visitors in the greeting area.

  We located and approached the worker and asked him if we could speak to him privately. He made no sudden moves and was cooperative. In a side hallway, we informed him that he was under arrest, and I asked him to turn around and place his hands behind his back. After handcuffing the worker, we escorted him down to an interview room, and proceeded to ask him questions about his warrant. The man told us that he was unaware that a warrant was outstanding for his arrest, but that he knew he had some problems related to a bitter divorce and custody battle. We continued to talk with the subject until the San Diego PD squad car arrived, and then we transferred custody of the prisoner so that local law enforcement officials could pursue the State of California charges.

  After the arrest I headed back up to my squad area and was greeted by a small crowd. They excitedly peppered me with questions. Not unlike many corporate environments, at the FBI, the vast majority of employees work normal business hours in a cube, and are rarely exposed to actual arrest scenarios. For someone to be arrested in the FBI building was a memorable event for the office, even if the subject was completely cooperative and non-violent.

  My squad handled a disproportionate amount of activity and arrests compared to other areas within the office, such as the white collar and terrorism areas, which tended to have lengthy and proactive investigations. While I would have greatly preferred to be on one of the squads that have more predictable days and more complex investigations, I also felt a great sense of pride to be combatting violent crime for the FBI, which was a highly respected area of expertise within the ranks of the agents.

  CHAPTER 37

  Top Ten Fugitive

  The FBI is well known for the top ten “Most Wanted” criminal list publicized nationwide and seen in police stations, post offices, and government buildings throughout the United States. The list is something of an “all-star” reference to the most heinous wanted criminals in the world. During my time in San Diego, the list was topped by Osama bin Laden (referred to by the FBI as “Usama,” which is a technically correct Romanization of bin Laden’s first name), with the remaining positions occupied by violent gangsters and murderers. While I had pursued leads and tips on the location of fugitives, each with a predictably low probability of successfully locating any of the top ten criminals, there was one occasion on which the FBI office believed with near certainty that one of these horrible criminals had indeed been found.

  Robert William Fisher, a former fireman in Scottsdale, Arizona, was the tenth person on the most wanted list. He had intentionally burned up his house with his family inside. This arsonist and murderer was believed to have fled to Mexico. He was known to possess high powered weapons and was considered to be extremely dangerous. This guy was the worst of the worst.

  The San Diego office received a call from a Mexican law enforcement official claiming to have located and arrested Robert William Fisher. Fisher had supposedly admitted to being a top ten fugitive, and every indicator showed that this was a positive match. No fingerprint or DNA tests had been performed, but a visual match, including physical characteristics and identifying marks, aligned with known information about the subject.

  Word spread quickly, creating an intense level of excitement and buzz within the FBI office. If indeed the actual fugitive had been captured and was being returned to the United States, his capture would generate massive national media interest. However, prior to the FBI contacting the media, we wanted to be absolutely certain that he was the right man. Since my squad worked fugitive violations, two squad mates and I were assigned the task of validating the identify of this person and taking custody of him from the Mexican authorities. With lights fla
shing we rushed down to the San Ysidro border crossing to take custody of the prisoner. Coordination between US and Mexican law enforcement is notoriously difficult; we did not want to be late and risk having this top ten fugitive slip between our fingers.

  After waiting in the “no-man’s land” vicinity between the US and Mexican entry points, we finally caught sight of a well-built man in handcuffs being led by Mexican authorities. As a true gesture of cooperation, with few words and little fanfare the Mexican officials simply turned him over to us, and then turned around and marched back into Mexico. With some attitude and a smirk, I told the subject, “Welcome back to the United States.” But this was no joking matter; this man had reportedly killed his family members and burned them. As a former firefighter and trusted member of the public safety community, his crime was an atrocity that is rare even in our largely imperfect society

  The subject immediately launched into a lengthy plea about how he was not the person we were looking for, which seemed like something that any top ten fugitive would say in a last desperate attempt to elude law enforcement. We ignored him and led him to a secured location within the US border crossing offices. We began the process of obtaining fingerprints from the subject, and helpful Border Patrol officials helped us with the process of matching fingerprints to the AFIS (Automated Fingerprint Information System) database that is managed by the FBI and utilized by law enforcement entities around the United States.