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Criminal Investigator

Department of the Interior
Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located with Bureau of Indian Affairs, Division of Drug Enforcement. Justice Services has law enforcement responsibilities for crimes committed on, or involving Indian Country. The incumbent contributes to this mission by performing assigned responsibilities serving our Indian population. Incumbent is a commissioned law enforcement officer under 25 USC, and is eligible for Law Enforcement Availability Pay (LEAP) in the amount of 25% of the basic salary adjusted by locality.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Posted 01/10/22
Location
Work site options
Telework eligible
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.
Salary
$56,551 - $103,176 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 12
Promotion potential
12
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Drug test
Yes
Security clearance
Top Secret
Position sensitivity and risk
Critical-Sensitive (CS)/High Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Announcement number
ST-22-11348632-CAWV-CV
Control number
630391000

Duties

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  • Conducts full range of complex criminal investigations relating to major Federal crimes specializing in narcotics, drugs, and marijuana cultivation violations on Indian Reservations and trust lands.
  • Apprehends, arrests, detains, and interviews all subjects suspected of violations of Federal, State, Tribal, and local laws. Testifies at hearings and trials and secures search warrants through processing of affidavit.
  • Gathers information at crime scenes, documents interrelationships of facts, relevance of evidence and validity of allegations involving criminal activity.
  • Prepares and/or reviews reports of investigation to ensure they are prepared in a clear, concise, logical, and impartial manner for submission to the appropriate law enforcement, attorneys, or prosecutors office.
  • Performs surveillance of sites and suspects and/or perform sensitive undercover assignments to obtain evidence, establish probable cause, or link multiple suspects and events to criminal activity.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship Required
  • Indian Preference applies
  • You will be required to have federal payments made by Direct Deposit
  • You may be required to successfully complete a probationary/trial period
  • A background security investigation will be required for all new hires. Appointment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • If you are a male applicant born after 12/31/1959 and are required to register under the Military Selective Service Act, the Defense Authorization Act of 1986 requires that you be registered or you are not eligible for appointment in this agency.
  • Incumbent is required to operate a government motor vehicle, must possess a valid driver's license, and have a safe driving record within the 4 year period immediately preceding submittal of GSA Form 3607.
  • This position is subject to both pre-employment and random drug testing as a condition of employment. Applicants will not be appointed to the position if a verified positive drug test is received.
  • The full performance level of this position is GS-12.? Promotion potential in this announcement does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee selected at some future date
  • This position has been approved for primary Law Enforcement coverage. LAW ENFORCEMENT AVAILABILITY PAY (LEAP): LEAP in the amount of 25% has been approved for this position.
  • Relocation or recruitment bonuses may be offered for this position.
  • TELEWORK: Indian Affairs has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster.

Qualifications

GL-09:
To qualify at the GL-09 grade level, you must have one year specialized experience at or equivalent to the GL/GS-07 investigating and arresting individuals suspected of crimes; participating in surveillance; collecting evidence; and preparing case reports.
OR
Education: 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree or a LL.B or J.D., in a related field of study OR a combination of specialized experience and education that totals 100% of the experience requirement.

GS-11:
In addition to the experience at lower grade level, to qualify at the GS-11 grade level, you must have one (1) year specialized experience at or equivalent to the GL/GS-09 grade level carrying out investigative duties related to narcotics criminal matters including production of reports; testifying in federal, state, tribal and/or local courts; securing search and arrest warrants; gathering information on individuals or organizations suspected of criminal activity; and performing undercover assignments.
OR
Education: 3 full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education or a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree ora L.L.M. in a related field of study OR a combination of specialized experience and education that totals 100% of the experience requirement.

GS-12:
In addition to the experience at lower grade levels, to qualify at the GS-12 grade level, you must have one (1) year specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-11 grade level carrying out the full range of in-depth narcotics investigative duties related to complex criminal matters in multiple locations, conducting surveillance for extended periods of time to obtain evidence and establish probable cause; and independently writing investigative reports.

This position requires that the incumbent meet initial and continuing qualifications in the use of firearms as outlined in the Gun Control Act of 1968, amended by the Lautenberg Amendment of 1996. An applicant whose background includes any of the following will be ineligible for consideration: 1) convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment exceeding one year; 2) has any outstanding warrants or is a fugitive from justice; 3) unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance; 4) adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to a mental institution; 5) illegally or unlawfully in the United States; 6) renounced U. S. citizenship; 7) subject to a court-ordered restraining order from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child; or 8) convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.

MAXIMUM ENTRY AGE LIMIT: The maximum entry-age for this position shall not exceed age 37, unless you have sufficient prior Federal civilian law enforcement [or firefighter, if applicable] experience or you are a preference eligible veteran. If you are a preference eligible veteran, you may be eligible for this position after your 37th birthday. You must supply a copy of your Defense Department Form 214 (DD-214) along with Standard Form 15 (if applicable) and any associated documentation in accordance with the instructions in this vacancy announcement. Failure to provide this documentation with your application will result in the loss of eligibility to receive a waiver of the maximum entry age requirement.


NOTE: if you have previous law enforcement (LE) Federal experience, you must enter the number of months when you respond to the questionnaire. For example: if you have 5 years of Federal LE, you must enter 60 months, 4 years would be 48 months, etc. Otherwise the system may screen you out.

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Merit Promotion candidates must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the announcement closing date.

Education

If you are qualifying based on your education, you MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all of your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement.

If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education which shows the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: FOREIGN EDUCATION

Additional information

All new hires earn the beginning salary of their pay grade (Step 1). See 2022 Salary Tables and select the pay chart for Albuquerque, New Mexico, Billings, Montana, Havre, Montana, Riverton, Wyoming, Spokane, Washington, and Yakima, Washington. If no specific chart is listed for this geographic location, see the "rest of U.S." chart.

Career Transition Assistance Programs: These programs apply to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: (1) meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria; (2) be rated well-qualified for the position with a score of 91 or above; and, (3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. For more information visit: http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp .

LAND MANAGEMENT WORKFORCE FLEXIBILITY ACT: If applying under the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act, you must provide documentation to support your eligibility (SF-50) and performance (references and/or performance appraisal). Under the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) two groups of individuals are eligible to apply under this announcement: current and/or former employees serving or who have served under time-limited competitive appointments at land management agencies. Land Management Agencies include: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, and U.S. Forest Service.

  • Current appointees: 1) must have been hired under competitive examining procedures to a time limited appointment with a land management agency; 2) must have served under one or more time limited appointment(s) by a land management agency for a period totaling more than 24 months without a break in service of 2 or more years; AND 3) must have performed at an acceptable level during each period of service.
  • Former appointees: 1) must have been hired under competitive examining procedures to a time limited appointment with a land management agency; 2) must have served under one or more time limited appointment(s) by a land management agency for a period totaling more than 24 months without a break in service of 2 or more years; 3) must have separated for reasons other than misconduct or performance; AND 4) must have performed at an acceptable level through the service period.
Certain candidates may be eligible to apply under a special hiring authority including those for disabled individuals, Peace Corps employees, Foreign Service employees, veterans, etc. For more information, visit the following OPM websites: USAJOBS Information Center: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/; Vets Info Guide: http://www.fedshirevets.gov/.

Former Federal Employees are required to indicate whether they received a Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment (VSIP) buyout in their previous employment with the Federal government, and are required to submit a copy of the applicable Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50) regarding the VSIP. Most individuals who accept reemployment with the Federal government within 5 years of receiving the VSIP amount, must repay the gross amount of the separation pay prior to reemployment.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Your application package will be evaluated against the minimum qualification requirements specified above. In order to qualify, your resume must specifically describe your work history and the duties you performed in each position. Your resume will be evaluated after the closing date of 01/24/2022 to determine whether you meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position. Qualified candidates will then be rated as best qualified, well qualified, or qualified depending on their possession of the knowledge, skills, abilities, competencies and experience requirements as demonstrated by your responses to the assessment questions. Competencies measured include:

  • Criminal Investigation
  • Legal, Government and Jurisprudence
  • Problem Solving
  • Writing

We will compare your resume and supporting documentation to your responses on the assessment questionnaire. If the information in your resume does not support your responses to the assessment questions, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your qualifications.

Qualified Indian preference candidates will be referred to the hiring manager in order of veterans' preference.

Due weight will be given to performance appraisals and awards during the interview/selection process conducted by the hiring manager. If referred, all relevant documents including performance appraisals and awards submitted with your application package will be forwarded to the hiring official for review.

You may preview the assessment questions here in the https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/11348632. Additional selections may be made from this announcement if identical vacancies occur in the same location within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued.

Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs

Department of the Interior (DOI) places a high value on diversity of experience and cultural perspectives and encourages applications from all interested eligible candidates. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility are fundamental principles that guide DOI and allow us to successfully achieve our mission.

Indian Affairs (IA) provides services to 574 federally recognized tribes with a population of about 1.9 million American Indian and Alaska Natives. IA offers an extensive range of programs such as social services, law enforcement and detention services, administration of tribal courts, natural resources management, economic development, implementation of land and water claim settlements, housing improvement, disaster relief, and the replacement and maintenance of schools, roads, and bridges.

IA is committed to ensuring a safe and engaging workplace, which exhibits the values of respect, teamwork, fairness, and honesty.

Preference in filling vacancies is given to qualified Indian candidates in accordance with the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 (Title 25, USC, Section 472). Verification Form BIA-4432 must be submitted with the application if claiming Indian Preference (IP). IP eligibles not currently employed in Federal service may be appointed under the Excepted Service Authority Schedule A, 213.3112(a)(7). Consideration will be given to Non-Indian applicants in the absence of qualified IP eligibles. For more information, please visit: https://www.bia.gov/jobs.

Agency contact information

Human Resources
Phone
(703) 390-6380
Email
BIA_HR_RESTON@BIA.GOV
Address
AS-IA Human Resources
12220 Sunrise Valley Dr., Room 4047
Reston, VA 20191
US

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Learn more about what it's like to work at Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

http://www.bia.gov/

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