Robert Anderson, Jr. will lead FBI’s criminal, cyber, response, and services branch

FBI Director James Comey named Robert Anderson, Jr. as the executive assistant director of the criminal, cyber, response, and services branch at FBI headquarters.

In this role, Anderson will be responsible for all criminal and cyber investigations worldwide, as well as international operations, critical incident response, and victim assistance. He succeeds Richard McFeely, who is retiring from the FBI in April.

“Bob has the leadership qualities I believe are essential,” said Comey. “He is smart and dedicated and cares about the agents and professional staff who fulfill the FBI’s mission. He has the depth and breadth of casework that will help lead CCRSB and achieve strategic results that benefit the FBI and the American public.”

Since August 2012, Anderson has been the assistant director of the FBI’s counterintelligence division; he was previously the division’s deputy assistant director for operations.

Anderson joined the FBI in 1995 and reported to the Washington Field Office (WFO), where he worked narcotics and violent crime cases. He then served on the Hostage Rescue Team and completed deployments to more than 20 countries.

Anderson became a supervisor in the counterintelligence division in 2001 and responsible for overseeing counterintelligence and espionage investigations. He coordinated several major espionage cases that involved the Department of Energy’s nuclear weapons laboratories. He also managed the program that placed FBI agents in Department of Energy labs.

Before joining the FBI, Anderson served as a Delaware State trooper for nearly nine years. He served in the uniform patrol division, the criminal investigative unit, and the aviation section.

Anderson is a pilot and paramedic and in 1990 was named the Delaware State Police Trooper of the Year — the force’s highest honor — for attempting to rescue individuals who were trapped in a burning home in 1989.