FBI presents on terrorist investigations

Provided.

To thank Jason Coffey for his presentation, President Jennifer Palakiko presented him with a certificate, and a donation was made to the Rotary Foundation in his honor.

At the weekly meeting of the Rotary Club of Tehachapi on Aug. 22, the Club welcomed Special Agent Jason Coffey from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. His primary mission is to protect the safety of the American people and uphold the Constitution of the United States. He was joined by Senior Supervisory Resident Agent Carlos Roscoe, his supervisor in the Bakersfield field office.

Agent Coffey was born and raised in West Virginia, then graduated from the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, with a Bachelor's Degree in Applied Mathematics. As an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, he was stationed in various locations around the country, where he investigated oil spills and chemical releases. While serving in the Coast Guard, he attended Texas A&M University, where he earned a Master of Science degree in Industrial Engineering, which he used during his final tour with the Coast Guard. In 2017, he worked as a mathematical analyst for U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Washington, D.C. while going through a long hiring process to work for the FBI. In May 2018, he joined the FBI as a Special Agent. His first assignment was the FBI field office in Miami, Florida, where he was assigned to investigate violations of U.S. terrorism laws. In 2020, he transferred to the Bakersfield office, where he investigates and prosecutes crimes related to weapons of mass destruction, violence and terrorism. A resident of Tehachapi, Jason has been married to his wife, Rachel, for 17 years, and they have four children together.

Agent Coffey shared a fascinating story about one of the cases he handled to investigate international terrorism, which is a crime that is committed on behalf of a foreign terrorist organization, such as ISIS. He explained that Trinidad and Tobago have more people going to fight on behalf of ISIS than any other country in the Caribbean. There is much work involved in arresting terrorists, and also in collecting the evidence necessary to convict, which is a difficult task given the level of conflict they are navigating. In the case he discussed, they were able to locate logbooks which contained valuable records, including financial transactions, weapons distributions, travel logs and liquidation of assets, which connected the terrorists to ISIS activity. In addition, they interviewed family members, including an ex-wife, and uncovered electronic messages that linked the terrorists to various terrorist attacks. Once captured, the terrorists were charged, took plea deals and are serving sentences for their crimes. Carlos Roscoe commented that Jason and his team won an award from the Attorney General's Office in Florida for their work that year.

The Tehachapi Rotary Club meets at noon every Thursday at Kelcy's. Rotary is committed to "Service Above Self," and devotes time and resources to projects in the local community, scholarships for college-bound high school seniors, and supporting global efforts for polio eradication. For more information about the Rotary Club, you can visit their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/RotaryClubofTehachapi/.