Paul A. Beeson is the newly appointed chief of the Tucson Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol, authorities announced Monday.
Beeson has been in charge of the Tucson Sector since November, when Chief Patrol Agent Manuel Padilla Jr. left to take over as chief of the Rio Grande Valley Sector, an official said.
Beeson began his career in the federal agency in February 1985. He served as chief of the Yuma Sector from July 2007 to November 2010, according to a Customs and Border Protection news release.
In 2010, he served as chief of the San Diego Sector, serving until 2014, when he returned to Tucson as commander of the Joint Task Force West-Arizona Corridor headquarters.
He now serves as both commander of the task force and as sector chief, the release says.
“Arizona presents a unique challenge,” said Beeson. “Countering the illicit activities of entrenched trafficking organizations requires an innovative, multi-faceted and collaborative approach. As long as this element exists, we will continue to evolve in order to efficiently and effectively disrupt and degrade their ability to operate,” he said in the release.
Other positions Beeson has held include assistant chief at the Border Patrol Academy, deputy assistant regional director at the Border Patrol’s Central Regional Office and assistant chief and then deputy chief for the El Paso Sector.
Beeson received a bachelor’s degree in business studies from Dallas Baptist University, and completed the senior managers in government program at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
