EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — For the first time in its history, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s El Paso Division will be led by a El Pasoan, the DEA announced on Friday, March 14.
Omar Arellano, a Del Valle High School graduate and an alumnus of the University of Texas at El Paso, is the new special agent in charge (SAC) for the DEA’s El Paso Division. He reported for duty on Monday, March 10.
“It is a great honor to come home and lead one of the great divisions of the DEA,” Arellano said. “The men and women who work in this region are excellent, and I look forward to working with them again in this new role.”
According to the DEA, Arellano is the 11th SAC to lead the division, which serves the entire state of New Mexico and 17 counties of West Texas.
Arellano began his career with the DEA in 2003 and has since served in the department for 22 years in several roles, including agent at the Mexico City Country Office, resident agent in charge of the Ciudad Juarez Resident Office, supervisory agent at the Dallas Division and executive assistant to the director of the El Paso Intelligence Center, according to the DEA.
In addition, Arellano has also served as an assistant special agent in charge of the Bogota, Colombia Office, where he was tasked to oversee DEA operations in Colombia and Ecuador, according to the DEA.
The DEA said that before his new role, Arellano served as the chief of foreign operations, where he was the expert on foreign drug issues and operations around the world. He also oversaw DEA’s global drug enforcement efforts in 91 foreign offices across 68 countries, according to the DEA.
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