An FBI supervisor, forced to transfer someone out of his anti-drug squad, held a “Survivor”-like election in which his agents voted a colleague out, law-enforcement sources said.
But the ousted agent refused to douse her torch – and when she complained to FBI brass, her boss got transferred.
The turnabout occurred in squad C36, based at 26 Federal Plaza, which investigates Jamaican and Dominican drug gangs.
As part of the FBI’s revamping, the bureau is cutting down on personnel in some areas devoted to violent crime, including drug gangs, and expanding in others fighting white-collar and computer-linked crimes.
Sources said the C36 supervisor was told he had to lose two people in the retrenchment.
Only one squad member volunteered for a transfer, so the supervisor decided to choose the second transfer by a vote.
“It was just like the show ‘Survivor,'” said one C36 member.
“We all had to vote somebody off.”
But the agent, a woman, who got the most votes and was selected for transfer didn’t like what happened.
“The girl went home, thought about it and the next day she complained,” the agent said.
FBI brass then overruled the supervisor – and had him transferred and replaced.
A spokesman for the New York district office, James Margolin, said:
“Consistent with bureau policy, I can’t comment on personnel matters.”
But he added:
“I will confirm a squad supervisor initiated a selection of an agent on his squad for transfer and the method of selection was overruled by senior management.”
C36 still has to transfer one more member and it was unclear how that would be done.
But a unit member said of the controversy:
“It wasn’t as bad as the TV show. Nobody ate any rats or bugs.”