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Lowndes County Sheriff Chris West welcomed a new investigator to the office Thursday when veteran law enforcement agent Tony Green joined the department for his first day providing safety services to area citizens.

Green, a Buffalo, New York native and retired U.S. Navy Reserve veteran, brings with him over 40 years of law enforcement experience.

“Tony came to Alabama by way of New York,” West said. “While he was there, he investigated some white-collar crimes, organized crimes, and things of that nature. He’s investigated dozens of homicide cases across Alabama, so he is seasoned when it comes to those types of investigations.”

Green served three years in the U.S. Navy before joining the Navy Reserves. In 1982, he entered the police academy and graduated as a New York State Policeman, retiring in 2003.

After retirement, Green moved to Alabama, served Tuskegee University as Lieutenant of Operations, worked as a Veteran’s Administration police officer, joined the Alabama Medicaid Agency force for four years, and became an Alabama State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) Special Agent in 2009.

Green retired from SBI as a Special Agent, Senior on Dec. 31.

“My wife Jessica is from Montgomery,” Green said. “I’ve talked on and off with the Sheriff and he asked me several years ago about coming here but I wasn’t ready to retire yet. I made the decision to retire in October, so I called [West] and we talked. I just told him, ‘I told you I would give it a shot’ so here I am.”

According to West, Green comes to the department with broader homicide investigation experience than most Alabama officers.

“We have guys with homicide investigation experience, but it’s different when you have only one or two homicides a year,” West said. “[In New York] they deal with multiple homicides a week. Just like anything else, the more you do something, the better you become at it. So, he’s someone who brings that experience we’ve never really had.”

Green worked as a uniformed Trooper in New York for approximately seven years before transitioning to investigations and specializing in narcotics and hostage negotiation.

“The crimes are the same in New York and Alabama,” Green said. “But in New York we had a lot more officers. In New York we would cover a county or county and a half. At SBI, we covered 12 counties.

“In New York I did hostage negotiation and was a sniper. My narcotics background, the skill set I  gained, helped me move forward with basic investigations. In narcotics, we were always communicating with people. I think that helped build my ability to talk to people and conduct interviews.”

Those skills enhance the Sheriff’s office, West said, and help them better serve local citizens.

“Being a small, rural county, it’s a big deal for us,” West said. “I’m hoping that our citizens will share the same energy we have about him being here. His skills enhance our ability to protect the community.”