CHARLESTON, WV— Today, Governor-elect Jim Justice announced that Jeff Sandy will serve as his secretary of WV Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety (DMAPS). Sandy is a Wood County native and currently a partner in Perry Forensic Investigations LLC, after working 25 years as a Special Agent with U.S. Treasury’s Criminal Investigation Division. He is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist.
In 2008, Sandy was elected Sheriff of Wood County. As Sheriff, Sandy modernized his office with new equipment and new investigative strategies. He was appointed to serve on the Board of the Regional Jail Authority. In 2012, he was elected Chairman of the Regional Jail Board. Sandy also served on the Board of the West Virginia Sheriff’s Association. He worked in Iraq on counter terrorism missions and to trace Saddam Hussein’s hidden assets to keep them from being used by terrorists. His achievements were featured on ABC’s World News Tonight (view here). Since 9/11, Sandy has been part of the elite Department of Justice funded SLATT Team (State and Local Anti-Terrorism Training) that has trained over 140,000 United States law enforcement officers in all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
“I want the best and brightest to serve in my administration and Jeff Sandy’s experience and qualifications are second to no one,” said Governor-elect Jim Justice. “Jeff served our country and the people of Wood County with distinction and I am totally confident that he will continue his extraordinary service to the people of West Virginia. Jeff Sandy is prepared to keep West Virginians safe and make sure our state is ready to handle emergencies.”
Jeff Sandy stated, “Governor-elect Justice and his team made it clear that they wanted to appoint someone for DMAPS that had international and domestic public safety experience; and in addition, had experience in private business. When the Governor-elect called me, and asked me to be his Secretary for DMAPS, it was an honor and an opportunity to give back to the state that I love. I assure the people of West Virginia that I will do everything in my power to keep West Virginians safe from foreign and domestic threats to our way of life.”
During his time at U.S. Department of Treasury he earned over 100 awards, including: West Virginia Mid-Ohio Valley “Law Enforcement Officer of the Year”, U.S. Department of Treasury Employee of the Year, and the second highest medal awarded by the Department of Defense, and the highest award issued by the Department of the Treasury for his investigative work in Iraq concerning the United Nations Oil for Food Fraud, Terrorism Funding, and the tracing of Saddam Hussein’s hidden assets.
Jeff and his wife Renee have 3 children that are graduates of Marshall University. Ben and Matt are Certified Public Accountants, and Brittany is a school teacher specializing in special education.