- FBI Agent Debra Mack
By Allan Lengel
ticklethewire.com
WASHINGTON — Debra Mack, the first African American female to head the FBI Mobile, Ala., office, is stepping down under a cloud of controversy.
WKRG tv reports that Mack had been the subject of a two-year internal investigation involving a high ranking local politician.
A source tells ticklethewire.com that FBI agents in the Mobile division were unhappy with her leadership and management style for a long time. In recent times, the FBI conducted a surprise inspection of the bureau and agents complained to inspectors about Mack.
Eventually, the tv station reports that Mack, a 26-year veteran of the FBI, was offered a choice: Become an FBI agent in Birmingham, which would have been a big demotion, or retire.
Angela Tobon, a spokeswoman for the FBI Mobile office, said Mack announced to staff earlier this week that she was retiring at the end of the month. She had headed up the FBI office since February 2005.
“She just said it was time to retire,” Tobon said. She declined to comment on reports of an internal probe or the FBI inspection.
For the past 60 days, Mack has been working in Washington as a deputy assistant director in the FBI’s Directorate of Intelligence, Tobon said.
She said Mack will go on vacation and contemplate her future.
