About Jake

William (Jake) Jacobs was born in Aberdeen, Maryland, the home of the famous Orioles baseball legend, “Iron Man,” Cal Ripkin,Jr.  Jake spent his youth either playing baseball or reading fiction crime novels such as the Hardy Boy mysteries. Imagining himself investigating crimes and capturing “the bad guy.” His fascination for the police and solving crimes eventually led to his career in law enforcement.

He joined and served honorably in the Marine Corps Reserve for six years. Six months after joining the Marines he applied for a position with the Maryland State Police.  Upon acceptance, he spent the next twenty-five years as a Trooper. Twenty of those years he served as a detective.  As a detective he got to do all the things he had dreamed about as a boy.  Serving in plain clothes, he had the opportunity to conduct undercover assignments as a Narcotics officer, and for  a period worked with a Federal Drug  Enforcement Agency taskforce. He also investigated white collar crimes as a member of the Maryland State Prosecutor’s Office.  He retired at the rank of Detective  Sergeant.

After retiring from the Maryland State Police, Jake served as a Major with the Cecil County Sheriff’s Department in Maryland. He was the Director of Law Enforcement and also the Director of the Detention Center. He then served the State of Maryland as a civilian fraud investigator. Later, he delved into insurance fraud as an investigator for a national insurance company. He completed his career conducting federal background investigations.

Through it all, Jake never stopped reading crime novels as entertainment. After fifty years of investigative experience, Jake felt he had some of his  own stories to tell. “Vengeance,” his first fiction crime novel, was published in November of 2022. It is set in an oceanfront tourist town and tells the story of a tough, no-nonsense detective, William Brogan.  His second book, “No Backup,” is due out in 2023. Once again, Detective Brogan takes the lead, but on this occasion, finds himself partnered up with a female private investigator who is every bit as tough as he is.

Jake’s books weave fact with fiction producing a realistic, suspenseful, and fast-paced read. He and his wife, Tobie, are living their dream in Ocean City, MD, which also provides the atmosphere to write his beach-themed stories.