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Wilkes-Barre native takes top spot for FBI in Philly

A Wilkes-Barre native with nearly three decades of service in the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Monday assumed the top spot in the agency’s Philadelphia Division.

AWILKES-BARRE native with nearly three decades of service in the Federal Bureau of Investigation assumed the top spot in the agency's Philadelphia Division on Monday.

Edward J. Hanko, Philadelphia's new special agent in charge, left his post as chief of the FBI's Cincinnati Division to come to Philadelphia. Hanko worked as a police officer in Baltimore from 1981 until joining the FBI in 1986.

Hanko has held numerous positions with the FBI, including as an assistant special agent in charge of the Detroit Field Office, a supervisory special agent overseeing drug-trafficking investigations, and an instructor at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Va.

Between 2009 and 2011, Hanko, a graduate of the University of Baltimore, worked in the FBI's Criminal Investigative Division, where he oversaw undercover, budget and administrative programs.

Hanko reported to work in the Philadelphia office Monday. He replaces former Special Agent in Charge George Venizelos, who in October was named assistant director in charge of the New York Field Office.