New Orleans, Louisiana - The New Orleans Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol is now under new leadership.

Gregory K. Bovino was promoted to Chief Patrol Agent July 9, 2018, to lead border security and law enforcement for a complex sector that includes 694 miles of coastal border and encompasses 516 counties and parishes in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky and the Florida Panhandle.

“Having the unique opportunity to work with some of the very best federal, state, and local law enforcement partners anywhere is special,” Bovino said. “It is said that the most advanced societies produce the most brilliant law enforcement officers – I find this to certainly be the case with the law enforcement community in New Orleans.”

This will be Bovino’s first time living and working in New Orleans, but the 22-year veteran of the Department of Homeland Security is no stranger to U.S. Customs and Border Protection or to the Border Patrol. He has worked for USBP since 1996, with assignments throughout the United States as well as foreign assignments in Honduras, Egypt, and Africa. Most recently, he held the position of Deputy Chief of Staff for U.S. Border Patrol Headquarters.

Bovino also holds two master’s degrees in National Security Strategy from the National War College, and in Public Administration from Appalachian State University, and a Bachelor’s Degree, Magna Cum Laude, in Natural Resources Management and Forestry from Western Carolina University. Additionally, he completed the CBP Leadership Institute in 2012 and the Department of Homeland Security’s Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program in 2016.

He said he is excited to bring that experience to New Orleans to continue protecting border areas along the Gulf Coast.

“The New Orleans Border Patrol Sector, the best sector in the Border Patrol, is committed to aggressive, professional and proactive immigration enforcement throughout the multi-state area of responsibility,” Bovino said. “Our agents are highly trained and ready to accomplish the mission however arduous or difficult it may be.”

The New Orleans Sector of U.S. Border Patrol is a division of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, located in the historic U.S. Custom House in New Orleans. As America’s unified border agency, CBP protects the United States against terrorist threats and prevents the illegal entry of people and dangerous materials into the United States while facilitating lawful travel and trade.