LAWFUEL – The Law Newswire – Michael S. Welch, a 20-year veteran of the FBI, has been named Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the FBI’s Indianapolis Office. Director Robert S. Mueller, III, appointed him to this position to replace retired SAC Keith L. Lourdeau. Most recently, Mr. Welch served as Section Chief of the International Operations Section, Office of International Operations at FBI Headquarters in Washington, DC.
Mr. Welch entered on duty with the FBI as a special agent on September 6, 1988. Following training at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, he was assigned to the Kansas City Field Office where he served for approximately seven years. During his tenure at Kansas City, he worked exclusively on the Organized Crime (OC)/Drug Task Force and was a member of the SWAT team.
In June 1995, he was transferred to the OC Section, Criminal Investigative Division, at FBI Headquarters. In August 1997, he was named Supervisory Special Agent of the Organized Squad, Miami Field Office. While in Miami, he served as the OC program manager and supervised the South Florida OC Task Force.
In January 2000, he was named Unit Chief of the La Cosa Nostra Unit, FBIHQ. After serving in this position for nine months he was selected as the Assistant Section Chief of the OC Section. In this capacity, he managed all FBI OC Investigations and the FBI/Hungarian National Police Task Force in Budapest, Hungary. He served on several international working groups and was the Co-Chairman for the U.S./Canadian Law Enforcement Cross-Border Forum. In May 2002, he was named Acting Section Chief of the OC Section.
In November 2003, he was appointed Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC), Washington Field Office, Administrative Division. As ASAC, he managed all support service functions as well as applicants, training, and the AG/Director’s details.
On September 15, 2004, Mr. Welch was appointed Section Chief of the International Operations Section, Office of International Operations at FBIHQ. In this capacity, Mr. Welch managed more than 75 FBI offices in U.S. Embassies and U.S. Consulates worldwide. In addition to his Executive Staff, he directed the FBI’s Visitor/Protocol, Passport and Visa Programs. He supervised FBI agent and support personnel assigned to Interpol’s National Central Bureau in Washington, D.C.; the United Nations office in New York; Interpol’s General Secretariat in Lyon, France; as well as Europol’s headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands.
