SAN ANTONIO – It’s a place he’s been to before, only this time, instead of fighting financial crime and working on the SWAT team, Aaron Tapp is in charge.
“I know the area very well. The last time we were here, we loved it. We loved the people. We loved the area. And when we left, it was with a broken heart because I didn’t think we would ever come back here again. And we have. And so the plan is to stay here for a while,” Tapp said.
Tapp has been the special agent in charge of the FBI’s San Antonio field office for six months. Although much has changed since he took office in 2013, the goal has remained the same.
“I stand here representing over 600 people who are phenomenal individuals. But we are ordinary people and we are ordinary people doing extraordinary work because we have an extraordinary mission. And that is to protect the American people,” Tapp said.
Tapp sat down with KSAT’s Steve Spriester for an episode of “Spriester Sessions” to discuss Tapp’s background and concerns. Watch the episode in the video player above.
The position of special agent in charge means Tapp is the local face of the FBI, and he says he’s comfortable with that. He also pointed out that the tasks the agency faces on a daily basis are very varied and evolving, but he doesn’t call them daunting, but rather “challenging.”
“It’s a challenge, but it’s a good challenge. It’s a fun challenge. It’s an exciting challenge. The people we have in this organization amaze me every day with the ideas they come up with to overcome and solve problems and innovate. And we just have great people,” Tapp said.
The biggest of these challenges is fighting terrorism, but his office faces other major problems.
“The jurisdiction of this office stretches from Waco to Brownsville, north to south and then on to Del Rio. You know, 679 miles of border. It’s a wide area. And so there’s a concern that keeps me up at night – there’s a number of concerns that are always on our minds, of course – terrorism remains and I think always will,” Tapp said.
Tapp listed his four biggest concerns as special agent in charge:
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Terrorism at home and abroad: “Our greatest concern in this area is the lone perpetrators, who give us little opportunity to detect a plot or intrigue in advance,” said Tapp.
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Cybercrime: “We fear that our elders, our older population, are being preyed on by fraudsters who sense that this is a very wealthy and vulnerable population,” Tapp said.
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Protecting children online: “We have agents and analysts who spend all day protecting our children online,” Tapp said.
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Cyberattacks: “The ransom demands, the virtual ransom demands that are happening at the border … there’s a lot that concerns us,” Tapp said.
They have a lot of work to do, but they are also determined. As a senior FBI special agent, Tapp says he is already meeting with people and speaking at seminars because he wants the public’s support in his efforts to keep people safe.
“We have to do a lot of things. But ultimately it comes down to our mission, and that is to protect the American people in every way possible,” he said.
You can find more priest sessions here.
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