By ABIGAIL SWANSON, COLLEGE RELATIONS
CHADRON – Ryan Hieb, Special Agent for the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office Division of Criminal Investigation, received the Distinguished Young Alumni Award (DYA) during Chadron State College’s Homecoming Oct. 1.
Other Distinguished Young Alumni honorees included Dr. Nisha Durand and Dr. T.J. Thomson (in absentia). Also recognized at Homecoming were Distinguished Alumni Award recipients Dora Olivares and Mark Brohman and Family Tree Award recipients the Guzman and Brown families.
The DYA is presented to CSC alumni who distinguished themselves in their chosen career or community or have shown exceptional service to the college and are 40 years of age or younger.
Hieb earned an associate degree from Casper College and graduated from CSC with a Bachelor of Arts in Justice Studies in 2010 and a Master of Science in Organizational Management in 2016.
While attending CSC, Hieb studied abroad in London as a graduate and undergraduate student and studied with the London Metropolitan Police.
After graduating, Hieb worked for the Casper Wyoming Police department as a Patrol Officer, Problem Oriented Response Team Officer, and Operations Support Team Detective.
In 2016, Hieb joined the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation as a Special Agent. He investigates technology-facilitated crimes, narcotics trafficking, and conducts computer forensic examinations on computers and other technologies involved in Internet Crimes Against Children and Narcotics Trafficking.
He has testified in federal court as an expert witness in computer and cell phone forensics and online child exploitations.
Hieb has received numerous awards and commendations including awards from the U.S. Department of Justice for outstanding casework in major narcotics trafficking cases and child exploitation cases. In 2021, he and his team received a unit commendation award from the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation for casework resulting in the rescue of 16 exploited children.
He lives in Casper, Wyoming, with his wife, Kelsey, and daughter, Ashtyn.