Special Agents have many different responsibilities, including community outreach, investigation, and continuous training. For example, Agents spend large parts of their days outside of the office, "in the field," working on cases. However, Agents may also spend an entire day in the office completing paperwork related to investigations. These varied tasks usually mean that a day in the life of a Special Agent will differ from the one before!

Join us to learn what one particular day in the life of an Agent in Washington, D.C., may be . . .

Special Agent Sydney Becker (fictional name) explains a day in the life of an Agent . . .

Play Video #1 RealMedia file MPEG file	An Agent's day begins early. Today, I woke up to begin firearms training at 7:00 a.m. Assigned to the Washington Field Office, Agents may practice at an indoor range in FBI Headquarters, or at an outdoor range at the FBI Training Academy in Quantico, Virginia. Training is an ongoing process for Special Agents in order to maintain their law enforcement skills. Today, while training outdoors, I joined other Agents to practice firing at moving targets and targets that were at close range. We need to be prepared for any situation that may develop during an arrest. After firearms training I cleaned my weapon -- all Agents are responsible for the cleaning and maintenance of their weapons.
Play Video #2 RealMedia file MPEG file	While cleaning my weapon, I received a call over my radio, "suspect located, need assistance with arrest, meet at briefing location." Since I had already helped in the beginning of this investigation, a federal bank robbery case, I was familiar with the predetermined location. Meanwhile, other Agents were also contacted to meet at a location near the suspect's hideout -- close, but not close enough to alert the suspect. Here, we were briefed on the situation, looked at a map, and determined who would do what during the arrest.
Play Video #3 RealMedia file MPEG file	Having determined that conditions were right for an arrest -- keeping in mind the safety of the public as well as the Agents -- Agents moved in to arrest the suspect of the bank robbery. Agents drove close to the scene and safely approached the trailer where the suspect had been hiding. I remained behind with other Agents to cover those Agents making the arrest. The suspect was taken into custody without incident.
Play Video #4 RealMedia file MPEG file	The suspect was brought back to the Washington Field Office for processing. Processing usually includes fingerprinting and, if the suspect waives his rights to an attorney, questioning about the crime. The suspect was fingerprinted, questioned, and sent to a Federal Detention Center while Agents continued the investigation, which included interviewing witnesses and acquaintances, gathering evidence through the use of search warrants, and completing the necessary paperwork. After a busy day of training, investigating, and paperwork, I returned home to rest before another day in the life of an Agent.

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