This coming week, Patrick J. Freaney is the most important bodyguard on the planet.
Freaney, the Special Agent in charge of the US Secret Service New York field office, and his team will be responsible for 142 of the most powerful leaders in the world and their spouses during the 79th session of the UN General Assembly.
The high-pressure week in Manhattan begins and ends in a huge, airplane-like hangar where a fleet of 500 state-of-the-art SUVs equipped with varying degrees of security systems — tinted windows, emergency lights, heavy-duty engines and brakes among other accoutrements — are deployed to ferry around dignitaries and their families to the UN and all over the city.
Freaney took The Post for a sneak peak — but the location of the logistics hub is kept as secret as the agency that uses it. All we’re allowed to say is it’s in one of the five boroughs.
“We are with them 24 hours a day,” Freaney said of the world leaders who come from countries as diverse as Malawi to Mongolia. “The Secret Service is responsible for them on US soil, wherever they decide to go — to a restaurant, to the theater, anywhere you can think of.
“We’ve got 142 heads of state and 71 spouses so that’s 200 protectees we are watching over in a city of 8 million. We mitigate risk the best we can.”
There’s even a “decon” room for vehicles that get dirty and need a quick wash.
Freaney’s aware that more eyes are on the Secret Service these days because of the recent attempted assassinations of former President Trump.
But of more concern to Freaney and his team are the protests that occur every year outside the UN – and this year anti-Israel demonstrations are likely.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives this week as tensions in the Middle East are intensifying and just as most countries backed a UN resolution Wednesday that sets a deadline for Israel to end its illegal occupation of Palestinian territory amid rising international criticism of Israel.
The Secret Service has to balance their protection of high-risk targets like Netanyahu while protecting First Amendment rights as well.
“The pressure attached to these situations are real,” said Freaney, who first worked out of the New York field office in 2000. “We try to make sure that events around the world are not given a stage here. In a global threat environment it’s important to have a handle on both global and domestic threats. You need to be aware of the issues.”
The Secret Service works in conjunction with other law enforcement including the NYPD, FDNY, the FBI and FEMA, to manage the mission.
“It’s not an easy job and it requires great coordination,” Freaney said. “You have to take into consideration everything going to the world but we’re completely committed to it.”
The UN is comprised of 193 member states in total.
