Montana News

Montana native named FBI new special agent

Posted: Feb 11, 2013 8:12 PM by Dennis Bragg - MTN News

(SALT LAKE CITY)- A woman who has direct field experience working in Montana is going to take over as the new FBI Special Agent in Charge for the entire region.

FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III named Mary F. Rook as the special agent for the Salt Lake City Division, which oversees all of the agency's field operations in Utah, Idaho and Montana.

Rook began her career with the FBI in 1984, serving as a laboratory technician, advancing to a special agent in Oregon in 1986.

In 1990, Rook was transferred to the Los Angeles Division, where she investigated Mexican drug trafficking organizations. She was later promoted to supervisory special agent and spent another five years overseeing complex drug and money laundering cases. In 2000, she was selected as the first Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) supervisor in the Los Angeles Division, where she oversaw sensitive internal investigations.

In 2001, Ms. Rook transferred to FBI Headquarters as a supervisor in the Internal Investigation Unit of OPR. In 2003, she was promoted to unit chief of OPR's Adjudication Unit. Ms. Rook reported to the Salt Lake City Division in November 2004 as assistant special agent in charge. In this role, she was responsible for all criminal, cyber, and administrative programs, as well as the five resident agencies located in Utah.

In September 2007, Rook relocated to Helena to serve as assistant special agent in charge. In that position she oversaw the Northern Border Liaison Officer, as well as the 15 resident agencies located in Montana and Idaho. She was responsible for investigating gangs, criminal enterprises, and violent crimes in the two states.

Following work in the FBI's Training Division, Rook spent the past two years as special agent in charge in the Anchorage Division in Alaska.

Rook, a Montana native, earned a Bachelor of Science degree in zoology from Colorado State University in 1983. She marked 29 years with the FBI in January 2013.