ICE agent named federal officer of the year by local rotary club
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent Steven Michaels was recently named 2014 Federal Officer of the Year by the Rotary Club of Greenville, South Carolina, at its annual Law Enforcement Appreciation Day.
Michaels, who has been with HSI for over 12 years, was honored for his outstanding work in investigating child exploitation-related crimes. One of the highlights of his efforts included his leadership in re-establishing the South Carolina Upstate Internet Crimes against Children Task Force.
“I probably worked about 30-40 child exploitation cases in 2014,” Michaels said. “I don’t work for the recognition, but it felt really good to be honored because a lot of the work we do never makes any press.”
As with most local cases, HSI agents such as Michaels provide assistance to law enforcement to evaluate a case, establish the lead in the investigation and then step in to assist in any way possible throughout the remainder of the investigation.
Michaels, who also is a peer support member, jokes that the bar has been set so high for his performance in 2014, that he’ll have to work harder and solve more cases this year.
It’s a challenge he’s ready to face.
“I’ve been working my butt off. There’s so much to do it’s insane,” Michaels said. “I just hope 2015 is even better than 2014.”
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