JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. - –
Similar to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fort Eustis Criminal Investigations Division and Langley Office of Special Investigations investigate crimes, ranging from larceny to murder. Additionally, their responsibilities are to enforce U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force laws and regulations.
"Because of the extent of the agents' duties, the CID is not a regular nine-to-five job," said U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jeremy Orthman, 12th Military Police Detachment special agent in charge. "Many investigators can attest that processing a crime scene can range from a few hours to several days."
U.S. Air Force Special Agent Roberto Flores-Rendon, Air Force OSI Detachment 201, agreed with Orthman and said balancing physical training, meeting deadlines and off-duty agent calls cause agents to work irregular hours.
Though being a special agent may be unpredictable, the demanding job has its perks, said Flores-Rendon.
"It's very dynamic," said Flores-Rendon. "[Although] it means rigorous training, irregular hours, mental and physical exhaustion, and personal risk, it also means excitement because we know at the end of the day the effort we put into an investigation will mean proving or disproving an allegation."
Orthman agrees the job keeps agents on their toes and provides a sense of fulfillment.
"One of the most interesting aspects of our job is that no two days are the same, regardless of where you are," said Orthman. "One day you could be catching up on administrative aspects of cases, and the next day you could be working 24 hours investigating leads on a new one."
"As a young agent, I didn't realize the impact I would have until I testified in my first court martial. At that point, I started to appreciate the intense responsibility each agent carried. It's a burden we don't take lightly and one I'll never forget."
Before deciding to become a special agent, Flores-Rendon said it is important to know what you are getting into.
"Understand exactly why you want to apply," said Flores-Rendon. "[Then] sharpen your time management, public speaking, and networking skills. Special Agents should have excellent interpersonal skills to communicate with others, as well as be flexible to balance both home and work life."
Being an OSI or CID agent may not be easy, but never ceases to be rewarding and challenging. For more information on the CID and OSI, visit http://www.cid.army.mil/index.html and http://www.osi.andrews.af.mil/.