Tightrope Character Bios

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Daniel Paul Gamez, Lieutenant, USN
Department Head, Combat Systems
Special Warfare Group 5
Randolph Air Force Base, Texas

Lt. Daniel Gamez is a native of Bisbee, Arizona.  His love of technology started early and while in high school he competed with the SKILLS-USA program in the Information Technology Programming Cluster.  His team along with the team from his school’s Engineering Cluster worked in conjunction to create a robot that would do basic tasks for the physically handicapped. The creative teamwork landed the Bisbee High School students national recognition and the school’s first top placement at a national competition.   After graduating in the top five percent of his high school class, he accepted a Navy ROTC scholarship to the University of Arizona where he dual majored in Information Science and Technology  and  Mathematics.   He received his Bachelor of Science and Mathematics Degrees and entered the United States Navy upon successful completion of the NROTC program.

Lt. Gamez’s career designation of Information Warfare Officer was key to his recruitment and acceptance for Basic Underwater Demolition School (BUD/S).  After completing SEAL Qualification Training, he was assigned to Special Warfare Group 1 in Coronado, CA for further specialized training.  He attended initial electronic warfare training as an IWO at CENINFODOM at Corry Naval Station, Pensacola, FL.  Lt. Gamez also served with SEAL Team 2 in Stuttgart, Germany.  During his tenure with SEAL Team 2, he and his team were recognized  by HQ-SOCOM for distinguished service while serving in Iraq in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.  Upon completion of two tours in Iraq and one tour in Afghanistan, Lt. Gamez was appointed as the Department Head of Combat Systems for Special Warfare Group 5 at Randolph Air Force Base near San Antonio, Texas.  He  is currently enrolled in Navy War College; his thesis statement titled “The New Age of Warfare:  Cyber Battlefield and Special Warfare Strategies”  is currently under evaluation.

Lt. Gamez is an avid photographer.

Rio Marie Jensen
Supervisory Customs and Border Patrol Agent
Department of Homeland Security
Naco CBP Station
Bisbee, Arizona

CBP Supervisory Border Patrol (SBP) Agent Rio Jensen is a native daughter of Bisbee, Arizona who returned after a distinguished career in the United States Air Force.  She is a graduate of Bisbee High School and holds an Associate of Arts in Criminal Justice from San Antonio College.  She completed Basic Training and attended Air Force Technical Training at Lackland Air Force Base with the 341st Training Squadron, Security Forces.  She applied for and was accepted in the Security Forces Academy where she completed her training and then was accepted into the elite Military Working Dog Handler program.  After her training, she volunteered for missions in Iraq with SOCOM forces in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Upon her separation from a highly decorated career and honorable discharge, SBP Agent Jensen entered the Department of Homeland Security’s  Customs and Border Patrol Basic Training at Glynco, GA.

SBP Agent Jensen’s first assignment took her to San Diego where she quickly rose to her current position and rank as  supervisor.  Her reorganization of the K-9 Unit resulted in successive record contraband seizuers for the San Diego Field Office which earned her and the San Diego CBP several awards for meritorious service.  She returned home to Bisbee with a transfer where she quickly introduced and organized the Naco Station’s  K-9 officer program.  SBP Jenson’s team along with the use of K-9 officers,  has been credited with severely impacting the movement of illegal traffic through the rough terrain they patrol.

During her spare time, SBP Jensen works with the local humane shelters as a volunteer.

Schotzie
K-9 Officer, Customs and Border Patrol  
Department of Homeland Security

Fräulein’s Schotzie Delight is a native of Stuttgart, Germany who came to the US Department of Homeland Security with her two brothers and three sisters in 2007.  She was whelped by a CBP dog foster family then entered the K-9 Officer’s Working Dog Center in Fort Royal, Virginia.   Upon certification and entry into the CBP program, Schotzie received her first assignment at the Naco CBP Station in Bisbee, Arizona in 2009.  There, her mission is to assist her handler in the suppression of potential threats to the United States border.  Schotzie is a highly decorated canine officer who has become a critical part of her team.  Her decorations include a Meritorious Service Award as part of a team recognized for record contraband seizuers and Commissioners Special Commendation Unit Award.