In this episode of Life In Accounting: The Where Accountants Go podcast, Fred Olivares, CPA started his career in a rather traditional way. He began his career in Internal Auditing, and in Fred’s case, he was employed by a bank. After hearing an FBI Agent speak though, Fred began some career-based soul searching. Was there more to his career than auditing?? Maybe….
Special Agent – Special Requirements
Fred decided to apply with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the FBI. That sounded exciting and he met all the eligibility qualifications.
- College degree from an accredited university
- United States citizen
- Three years of work experience
- No history of drug use
- Be able to obtain Top Secret Clearance – this clearance is extensive. Your neighbors, friends, and family will all be interviewed.
Once you meet those, you must:
- Pass the written examination
- Pass the panel interview
The total process can take up to approximately one year.
FBI Work – TV Worthy
Because Fred was a CPA, he was assigned to the white-collar squad. The FBI has several different squads, and CPAs may work on many different investigations. For example, the bombings that took place in Austin in early 2018 – all agents worked on that case.
Fred started in bank fraud with the FBI. This taught him how cases flow through the system. It also taught him how to interview people. He then worked on high-profile and other public corruption cases in San Diego. In McAllen, he worked border corruption and health care fraud. In San Antonio, he worked public corruption cases as well.
For Fred, the challenges were new every morning and it allowed him to develop many friendships.
Want to hear about some of Fred’s true crime cases? Please listen in on this week’s audio interview with Fred Olivares.
To listen in on this interview with Fred Olivares, please use the player below:
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