FBI - New York Field Office

F.B.I.

Address

FBI New York
26 Federal Plaza, 23rd. Floor
New York, NY 10278-0004
newyork.fbi.gov
(212) 384-1000

Location

The New York City offices of the FBI are located in at the Federal Center along the northern edge of a neighborhood called Five Points. This little district is located directly between the districts of Tribeca and China Town and as such is part of Lower Manhattan.

Agents

• -- Astor Spalding -- Director
• -- Celeste Forney -- Assistant Director
• -- Leon Clark -- Internal Security Chief
• -- Burke Van Rossem -- Senior field agent.
• -- Lula Byrd -- A female field-agent transferred from Houston, Texas.

New York Field Office Specialized Capabilities

Since crime scenes can be anywhere, the evidence teams are trained to reach tough places. The agents in Chicago possess a mix of talents and experience that enable them to help protect Chicago-ans and their families, from a full range of national security threats and major crime problems.

The staff are not only special agents, but also a variety of specialized professionals such as intelligence and financial analysts, investigative specialists, support services technicians, language specialists, paralegals, electronics technicians, and security experts.

The strength of the FBI lies in its investigations—the very heart of all operations— and in the collection, analysis, and sharing of intelligence that drives and supports those investigations both locally and nationally. In every case, the Bureau works to objectively gather the facts and to develop evidence that can stand up in a court of law. To do that, the Bureau interviews witnesses, runs undercover operations, analyzes financial records, maps and manages crime scenes, develops informants, makes arrests, conducts surveillance, and gathers information and intelligence from around the globe. The cases of today are often complex and multi-faceted, involving a range of public and private sector partners and covering multiple jurisdictions.

Evidence Recovery and Processing

In New York, the FBI has six 10-member Evidence Response Teams made up of special agents who are sent to crime scenes to secure the area and exhaustively gather and process physical evidence. Each team member has a forensic specialty and been extensively trained. They can take photographs, diagram and survey scenes, gather fingerprints, determine bullet trajectories, recover DNA, gather and process the smallest of clues, and more. The teams coordinate with the FBI Laboratory and assist both local and international law enforcement upon request. The New York Division also has Underwater Search and Evidence Response Team (USERT), one of four FBI dive teams dedicated to retrieving evidence from underwater environments. Our highly-trained and well-equipped 12-member team conducts underwater crime scene investigations and complex searches. The team responds to locations worldwide and has been involved in such major investigations as the mid-air explosion of TWA Flight 800, the Columbia Shuttle crash, and the 2007 Interstate bridge collapse in Minneapolis.

Computer Forensics

The FBI in New York have a Computer Analysis and Response Team, or CART, that applies this same evidentiary concept to the digital world. These forensic examiners are experts at retrieving evidence from a vast array of digital devices, at processing that evidence in a way that maintains its integrity for use in court, and at presenting the results of their findings to investigators.

Tactical Support and Crisis Response

The New York offices have a 46-member SWAT (Specialized Weapons and Tactics) team that can storm barricaded buildings and vehicles, breach locks and other structures, arrest armed and dangerous criminals, rescue hostages, patrol areas and provide security, navigate tough terrains by climbing and rappelling, use special techniques to stop fleeing cars, and conduct site surveys for special events. The team is highly trained and heavily equipped, with expertise in a variety of weapons, including pistols, assault and sniper rifles, and shotguns. The Bureau also has a Hostage Rescue Team designed specifically to locate and liberate victims in hostage situations.

Global Crisis Response

The New York Bureau office has a group of agents who, in addition to their regular duties, are ready at a moment’s notice to respond to large-scale investigations overseas. They are part of New York’s Rapid Deployment Team (RDT), which includes SWAT, ERT, and USERT capabilities and a general investigative and support element.

Crisis Negotiation

This FBI Crisis Negotiation Team is dedicated to disrupting, preventing, and defeating criminal-related hostage takings against U.S. citizens and American interests domestically and internationally. The team, which consists of special agents who receive specialized training in crisis and hostage negotiation, can also respond to kidnappings and extortion matters.

Bomb Recovery and Analysis

The New York office employs five special agent bomb technicians in New York who can test and render safe a variety of explosive devices. They respond to calls of suspicious packages or objects and are deployed during bombing investigations, often working closely with our Joint Terrorism Task Forces. They gather diagnostic information from the explosives that may be relayed as vital intelligence to local investigators and to the national Terrorist Explosive Device Analytical Center. These bomb techs often work and train with local first responders and law enforcement.

Hazardous materials

This field office has a large HAZMAT team that can respond to terrorist attacks and criminal incidents involving hazardous materials—including chemical, biological, and radiological—working in concert with local officials and with Weapons of Mass Destruction experts at FBI Headquarters.

Translation

This group of language specialists can translate written documents and audio files in a variety of languages for terrorism, espionage, and criminal cases. They also join agents on cases, translating during live interviews and even during undercover operations.

Special Affairs Division

This group of specialists works to ensure the on going quality of investigations and that agents in New York and across the country follow the best practices and guidelines set forth by the Office of the Director of the FBI. While this description makes it sound like the SAD is an internal affairs department, it is in fact the investigations wing of the FBI that follows up on supernatural incidents.