By Steve Neavling
A 26-year veteran of the FBI was sworn in as a police chief in Mississippi on Monday.
Former agent John Quaka is now the top cop in Tupelo in northeast Mississippi, the Associated Press reports.
“In my youth, I dreamed of being a special agent with the FBI; as an adult, I dreamed of being a chief of police,” Quaka said at his investiture ceremony. “This is a great community. It is amazing. It is where we work, where we worship, where we raise our kids.”
The Tupelo City Council voted to confirm Mayor Todd Jordan’s nomination of Quaka last month.
Quaka will be in charge of an $11 million police budget, which includes about 120 employees.
He replaced Police Chief Bart Aguirre, who retired over the summer.
Quaka joined the FBI in 1995, when he served in the Los Angeles Division. He then worked out of the Greenville office and the Tupelo office. Until recently, he worked in the Oxford office. He has been a Tupelo residents for 20 years.
