Longtime Jefferson County Sheriff Ted Mink didn’t take much time to find a new job.
He starts next week at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation as a deputy director overseeing statewide criminal investigations, said CBI Director Ronald Sloan.
Mink, 65, will begin Tuesday, the same day the new Jefferson County sheriff is sworn in. Mink, who was term-limited as Jefferson County sheriff, started working in law in 1973. He said Wednesday he is not ready to retire.
“I guess I have a desire to share what I’ve learned these last 42 years in law enforcement,” Mink said, “and I’ve got what I consider a lot of gas left in the tank and this hunger to keep serving.”
Mink was chosen for the job after a competitive selection process in which he rose to the top of a pool of candidates, Sloan said. Mink will earn $120,000 annually.
“Ted is an incredibly talented individual,” Sloan said. “He knows law enforcement investigations inside and out.”
Mink worked for Sloan as a lieutenant and deputy chief for nine years at the Arvada Police Department. That connection did not earn Mink the job, said Sloan, a former Arvada police chief.
Candidates who applied for the deputy director’s job were screened through a series of questions. After those questionnaires were scored, six finalists were interviewed by a panel of police chiefs, sheriffs and prosecutors.
The panel sent its recommendations to Sloan.
As head of investigations, Mink will oversee a staff of 45 agents, analysts and administrative personnel.
About 95 percent of the agency’s cases come from requests from police departments and sheriff’s offices who need assistance.
Mink replaces Steve Johnson, who went to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.