Michael Templeton

Former DEA Special Agent

Michael Templeton works closely with Shipley Law Firm to provide investigative insight and strategic consulting in complex criminal defense matters across Tennessee. With decades of experience in local, federal, and international law enforcement, Michael brings a rare depth of knowledge to cases involving serious felonies, drug conspiracies, weapons charges, money laundering, drug-induced homicides, homicides, and other high-stakes criminal matters.

Michael is a recently retired Special Agent of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, where he served for 25 years from 1997 to 2021. During that time, he worked in domestic offices in Louisiana, Tennessee, and South Florida. Of those 25 years, Michael spent 10 years in the Eastern District of Tennessee in the DEA Johnson City Office, where he led and participated in dozens of complex drug conspiracy investigations prosecuted in the U.S. District Court in Greeneville, Tennessee.

Michael also served in key international assignments during his DEA career. From 2018 to 2021, he served as the DEA’s Liaison to U.S. Special Operations Forces in Kabul, Afghanistan. Earlier, from 2010 to 2012, he served in Islamabad, Pakistan, targeting global drug trafficking networks linked to terrorism. While in Afghanistan, Michael led a small investigative cell focused on ISIS-K, Taliban, and al-Qaeda narco-terrorist financiers. In 2020, his team concluded a nine-month operation known as Green Kandahar, which resulted in the arrest of an individual identified by Interpol as “The Taliban’s Bank,” along with five of his sons. The investigation uncovered evidence that the patriarch had moved money directly for Usama Bin Laden and Taliban founder Mullah Omar and had laundered approximately $5 billion over 20 years.

In addition to his operational work, Michael has been recognized as a subject matter expert in Global Counter-Terrorist Financing and Anti-Money Laundering. He has served as a guest speaker for Homeland Security Today magazine and the Johnson City Press during coverage surrounding the 20th anniversary of 9/11.

Before joining the DEA, Michael served for four years as a police officer with the Johnson City Police Department, including one year assigned to the State of Tennessee First Judicial Drug Task Force. During the recruitment process with the department, he ranked first out of 110 applicants and later graduated first in his class at the Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy outside Nashville.

Michael’s distinguished law enforcement career has earned significant recognition. In 2000, he received the DEA Administrator’s Award, the agency’s highest honor for investigative excellence. He is also the recipient of two OCDETF Case of the Year recognitions in the Eastern District of Tennessee and the Southern District of Florida.

Michael holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree, cum laude, from East Tennessee State University and has completed thousands of hours of specialized training across multiple disciplines with the U.S. Government. He is also licensed in the State of Tennessee as a Private Investigator, License #9039.