He’s spent more than 31 years as a law enforcement officer, including 22 at the DEA. At the agency, he worked in Oklahoma, New York and Washington. He spent time overseas in Colombia, Afghanistan and the Middle East. The agency said he fought drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a directive late on Thursday naming Drug Enforcement Administration head Terry Cole as the "emergency police commissioner" of Washington's Metropolitan Police Department.

Attorney General Pam Bondi has appointed Terry Cole, administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, as "emergency police commissioner" of Washington, D.C. The designation gives Cole the powers and responsibilities of the chief of police,