By Casey Gannon, Julia Benbrook, Priscilla Alvarez

(CNN) — President Donald Trump announced Saturday that he will nominate former Oklahoma state trooper Lance Schroyer as director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, putting a little-known candidate in line to lead an agency that has spurred controversy amid the administration’s ramped-up deportation efforts.

The Department of Homeland Security said Saturday that Schroyer has been serving as a senior adviser to Secretary Markwayne Mullin, overseeing coordination between federal immigration authorities and local law enforcement agencies, but his selection to helm the immigration enforcement agency came as a surprise to ICE officials.

A former Marine, Schroyer previously served as a major in the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety’s Emergency Services Unit, where he directed specialized units tasked with operations including disaster response, civil disturbance and immigration enforcement, DHS said in its release.

“Lance has firsthand experience getting Illegal Aliens OFF our streets and, just like ME and our Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin, he LOVES the men and women of ICE,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

Trump, who called Schroyer a “proven leader” with over 29 years of law enforcement experience, urged the Senate to immediately confirm him as ICE director.

The agency has been without a Senate-confirmed leader since the Obama administration. If confirmed, Schroyer would oversee a workforce of 22,000 people and a multibillion-dollar budget.

“The Senate must quickly confirm Lance Schroyer,” Mullin said in his statement.

ICE, which is overseen by the Department of Homeland Security, has played a key role in Trump’s effort to crack down on illegal immigration, spurring protests in some cities where those actions have led to shootings and aggressive confrontations.

Mullin, who represented Oklahoma in the Senate, told CNN in a statement that Schroyer is a “great pick.” He added he is “confident Lance’s strong leadership and firsthand experience will empower the men and women of ICE to deport criminal illegal aliens, secure the homeland, and protect the American people.”

Mullin said Schroyer is “coming straight from the operational field,” where he worked alongside state and federal partners under the 287(g) program. The program, among other things, allows ICE to authorize state and local law enforcement officers to perform specific immigration enforcement duties under the federal agency’s supervision.

Mullin and Schroyer’s relationship dates back years, and Schroyer was the secretary’s choice to lead the immigration enforcement agency, according to an administration official.

It’s not unusual for secretaries to select agency leadership familiar to them. Former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem brought on Madison Sheahan, who worked as her political director while she was governor of South Dakota, to serve as ICE deputy director.

David Venturella, the current acting director, is a veteran of the federal agency, while Schroyer would be new to the workforce if confirmed. Venturella is expected to stay on as acting director until Schroyer is confirmed, according to a DHS official.

Trump’s nomination announcement comes after a turbulent year for ICE and DHS.

Todd Lyons, a veteran of the federal agency, stepped down as acting director in the spring after facing immense scrutiny over the agency’s ramped-up arrests and over the fatal shootings of two US citizens by federal agents in January.

Mullin, who took the reigns at DHS in March after Trump fired Noem, has begun to make some policy changes but faces pressure from lawmakers, including Republicans, to go further in seeking to right the embattled department.

Mullin has long been a staunch supporter of Trump’s immigration crackdown, though he’s repeatedly said he wants agents to take a “quiet” approach while remaining aggressive on arrests.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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