Special Agent in Charge Frank A. Tarentino III

Mr. Frank A. Tarentino III is the Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New York Division covering the State of New York. Mr. Tarentino is a twenty-four- year veteran of the DEA having served diverse assignments to include foreign operations, multi-agency international investigations and local impact initiatives in domestic offices. Mr. Tarentino’s experience has resulted in a leadership style focused on dismantling drug trafficking organizations at all levels through local, state, federal, and international law enforcement trust, transparency, and partnership.

Mr. Tarentino joined the DEA in 1998 after serving as an Officer in the United States Army. As an Airborne Ranger Infantry Officer, Mr. Tarentino achieved the rank of Captain and was assigned to 1st Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, United States Army Special Operations Command. Mr. Tarentino’s military service was followed by seven years at the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, the largest and oldest drug task force in the nation.  

In 2005, Mr. Tarentino was selected to be on DEA’s Foreign-deployed Advisory and Support Team (FAST) based out of Quantico, VA. As a special agent and Team Leader on FAST, Mr. Tarentino conducted numerous enforcement operations which cemented DEA’s partnership with the Afghan Police and military; seizing 262 metric tons of hashish, 30 metric tons of opium, 1200 kilograms of heroin, three dozen heroin labs, and over 20,000 kilograms of explosive materials. 

Mr. Tarentino was promoted to Group Supervisor in 2007 and returned to the United States in 2010 and reassigned to the New Jersey Division.  As Group Supervisor in the New Jersey Division, Mr. Tarentino’s team focused on local and international drug trafficking organizations to include Mexican based criminal groups, money laundering networks, and drug distributors linked to overdose deaths.  

In 2015, Mr. Tarentino was promoted to Assistant Special Agent in Charge where he led 160 enforcement and administrative personnel consisting of 13 groups focused on dismantling drug trafficking organizations throughout New Jersey with ties to other domestic and international DEA offices.  

Mr. Tarentino was promoted to Special Agent in Charge of the Seattle Division in 2020 where he was responsible for offices in four states.    Throughout Mr. Tarentino’s two years at the Seattle Field Division, he incorporated data driven intelligence programs into enforcement operations to combat rising overdose rates and drug-related violence.   In addition, Mr. Tarentino’s leadership merged DEA with several other federal, local, and state health, community, and law enforcement agencies to address the imperative role of prevention and education in saving lives from the consequences of drug abuse. 

In March, 2022, DEA Administrator Anne Milgram selected Mr. Tarentino to lead the largest division in DEA, the New York Division, as Special Agent in Charge where he currently oversees hundreds of investigations targeting criminal organizations worldwide in order to save lives.  

Mr. Tarentino graduated in 1993 from Norwich University, the Military College of Vermont with a degree in Criminal Justice.