Robert J. Bell is an experienced former police officer and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) senior executive with over 30 years of experience in law enforcement, investigations, and security. He is an expert in developing programs and directing complex investigations that mitigate risk, eradicate threats, and ensure full regulatory compliance.
Whether he is building a new program from the ground up or executing a high-stakes investigation, Mr. Bell balances big-picture vision with a hands-on approach. His efforts yield tangible results with less risk and greater resiliency.
Most recently, he served as Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Chicago Division, where he led a staff of about 600 Special Agents, Diversion Investigators, Intelligence Analysts, Task Force Officers, Business Operations Staff and Contractors in 11 offices across Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.
He oversaw investigations into transnational organizations involved in drug trafficking, money laundering, and corruption. He also led investigations into the diversion of legally produced controlled substance pharmaceuticals.
During his tenure at the Chicago Division, Mr. Bell expanded the drug diversion program, created new anti-violence task force, cybercrime and intelligence groups, and modernized the business operations section, up-leveling productivity and investigative outcomes across the division. He also played an integral role in achieving broad-class control of fentanyl-related substances by testifying before a state Senate committee and contributing to first-of-its-kind legislation.
Before joining the Chicago Division, Mr. Bell advanced the DEA mission and influenced operations in 69 countries from a unique vantage point at agency headquarters. As Executive Assistant in the Office of Operations Management, he optimized processes across Budget, Policy Management, and Data & Operational Accountability sections.
Earlier, as Staff Coordinator of the Diversion Control Division’s Synthetic Drugs & Chemicals Section, Mr. Bell conceived, developed, and executed a game-changing initiative addressing the threat of novel psychoactive substances (NPS) entering the US from East Asia. He secured funding, devised standards for substance collection and analysis, and pushed past the finish line—achieving full legal control of synthetic designer drugs.
In this role, Mr. Bell stood at the forefront of the NPS drug threat. He represented the US at the United Nations Office on Drugs & Crime (UNODC) NPS Experts Meeting and traveled worldwide to advise and train US and foreign law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, and chemists.
Prior to his work at DEA headquarters, he excelled as a Supervisory Special Agent in the Chicago Division’s Milwaukee office, where he coached and mobilized teams while leading a multiagency task force to investigate, prosecute, and convict illicit networks operating in the US and internationally.
Mr. Bell started his DEA career in 1995 as a Special Agent in the Detroit Division and built the foundation for his success as a Police Officer with the St. Charles Police Department for 5 years. During his tenure with the Department, he was appointed to an Illinois State Police Task Force as a Drug Investigator.
Did you know?
Bob has been active in the Drug Enforcement Administration Survivors Benefit Fund for many years. The DEA SBF ensures that DEA Employees who fall in the line of duty are properly memorialized, and that their surviving family members receive financial support.
