Benjamin B. Wagner

Benjamin B. Wagner was appointed by President Barack Obama on November 6, 2009 as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of California. Wagner draws on his many years of experience in the U.S. Attorney’s Office to address the challenges that face the Eastern District today.

Wagner came to California’s Eastern District in 1992, starting in the Narcotics and Violent Crime Unit, and then serving for several years in the White Collar Crime Unit.  Between 2000 and 2009, he was Chief of the Special Prosecutions Unit, which is responsible for prosecuting public corruption, financial fraud, tax evasion, corporate fraud, cyber crimes, identity theft, and other federal crimes.  Wagner also served as the Hate Crimes Coordinator and presided over national security and terrorism-related investigations and prosecutions as the district’s Anti-Terrorism Coordinator.  He has participated in 18 jury trials, and has earned national awards on several occasions for his work on cases involving public corruption, money laundering, tax evasion, domestic terrorism, and health care fraud.

From 2005 to 2006, Wagner was stationed in Jakarta, Indonesia as the U.S. Department of Justice’s Resident Legal Advisor, advising Indonesian prosecutors on combating corruption, terrorism, money laundering, and related criminal justice issues.  He was awarded the Meritorious Honor Award by the U.S. State Department for his work in Indonesia. 

Prior to joining the U.S. Department of Justice in 1992, Wagner spent over five years as an associate at the New York City law firm of Cahill, Gordon & Reindel.  He graduated from the New York University School of Law in 1986, where he was Managing Editor of the NYU Journal of International Law and Politics, and from Dartmouth College in 1982.