Which investigations require the assistance of the FBI?

To better understand the jurisdiction of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and when it does step in to aid local or state police, you must remember that many types of crimes in the United States are considered both state and federal crimes. The FBI generally gets involved in more serious or escalated ones.

A bank robbery, for example, is both an armed robbery and a state crime. If the bank is federally insured, the FBI will get in the picture and handle the investigation. This is also the case with huge fraud cases and deemed politically connected or motivated crimes.

Any federal agency has full investigatory and arrest powers, but the FBI specifically targets domestic cases that demand more attention, focus, and work than those the local police can provide, as decided upon by the U.S. government.

It must likewise be noted that aside from enforcing criminal laws throughout the country, the FBI is mandated “to protect and defend the U.S. against terrorist and foreign intelligence threats.” The bureau has jurisdiction over more than 200 categories of federal law violations, some chief cases being the investigation of possible spies, hackers, pedophiles, gang leaders and mobsters, serial killers, and terrorists.

Adam Quirk is a renowned criminal justice professional with more than 15 years of experience in FBI and DEA investigations, regulatory compliance, team leadership and supervision, program initiation and development, and coalition-building. Visit this blog for similar updates.