Vincent “Rocco” Vargas was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. He enlisted in the U.S. Army and went on to serve three combat deployments with the 2nd Battalion of the elite 75th Ranger Regiment. In 2009 Vargas became a Federal Agent with the Department of Homeland Security, and was a medic with the Special Operations Group. After temporarily leaving his federal career for film and television, he returned to the Border Patrol’s Strategic Planning and Analysis Directorate (SPAD) in March 2025—while continuing to work with veterans, and as a writer, entrepreneur and motivational speaker. He runs the popular Borderland and VinnyRoc podcasts.
Vincent Vargas is a giant of a man who fills the screen from his home ‘operations room’ throughout our interview. He refuels on protein bars as we talk, while making it clear just how plausible he was as an army sergeant (in real life) or as the Capitan Del Camino of a fictional outlaw biker gang (on Mayans M.C.). His fame acquired from appearing in films and on TV also guaranteed publicity for his SPAD appointment. While good-humoured—and slightly disappointed he can’t also offer me a protein bar—it’s clear he is entirely serious about going back into homeland security. Could he really be giving up acting to concentrate on a real-life role in Border Patrol?
John Ladd, a border rancher from Arizona, says that since Trump took office, illegals crossing through his property have gone from 50-200 per day to only 3 per day with no getaways.
All it took was a real President. pic.twitter.com/LkdjLvYZqd
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) April 7, 2025
