DALLAS — After 3.5 years with the FBI Dallas division, Special Agent in Charge Matthew DeSarno is retiring at the end of the month.
He sat down with WFAA to talk about his time at the Dallas bureau.
DeSarno has been with the FBI since he was 29 years old.
“This has been the best job I could ever imagine having,” said DeSarno as he shared memories.
He said, “I wanted to be in the FBI since I was this big,” meaning since he was a child.
Being in the bureau ran in his family. His father was the assistant director in charge at the Los Angeles bureau.
“My father was an FBI agent, it was my goal,” said DeSarno, as he showed a picture of his father and him during a ceremony.
As special agent in charge for 3.5 years, DeSarno oversaw over 600 employees. His goal was always to work with local law enforcement and the community.
“We make sure we’re finding justice for victims for working with partners for an impactful community,” said DeSarno.
DeSarno and this team responded to multiple crisis events.
“Just a couple of weeks after I arrived, we had the courthouse shooting,” said DeSarno. His team made sure everyone made it out safely.
From the 2019 downtown Dallas courthouse shooting to making sure the protests in summer of 2020 remained calm, “We spent a lot of time ensuring that we were protecting peoples’ first amendments rights and holding criminals accountable,” said DeSarno.
Fast forward to the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, where at least 40 people were arrested from North Texas.
DeSarno said, “that brand of extremism was present in our area, and we saw the scope of it. We rededicated our resources.”
From riots to the synagogue standoff in Colleyville earlier this year, DeSarno played a major role in making sure innocent lives weren’t lost.
"The conduct of the hostages combined with true heroism of the hostages and the negotiators," said DeSarno, as he talked about being on scene that January day.
Then in the beginning of October, DeSarno was instrumental in bringing awareness to North Texas about hate crimes.
“Hate does not have a place in Dallas. We know that hate crimes are under reported” said DeSarno during the news conference.
As DeSarno retires at the end of October, he is confident that a great leader will take over.
“Regardless of how good or bad times are right now, you have to have confidence that you will prevail,” said DeSarno.
FBI’s National Press Office shared his biography:
Mr. DeSarno joined the FBI as a special agent in 2002. Throughout his career, he has focused primarily on violent gang activity and counterterrorism matters. He first served in the San Diego Field Office, where he was assigned to the gang group of the Violent Crimes Task Force. He was promoted to supervisory special agent in 2007 and assigned to the Safe Streets and Gang Unit at FBI Headquarters, where he provided program management oversight and support for gang investigations throughout the country. In 2009, DeSarno was transferred to the Chicago Field Office, where he led the Joint Task Force on Gangs. He was promoted in 2013 to assistant special agent in charge, managing the white-collar, public corruption, and civil rights programs in Chicago. He later assumed responsibility for the violent crime, transnational organized crime, SWAT, evidence response, and crisis negotiation programs in Chicago.
DeSarno was named the chief of the Strategic Operations Section of the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division at Headquarters in 2015. He oversaw the Bureau’s efforts in global counterterrorism targeting and counterterrorism human intelligence operations overseas. In 2017, he was promoted to deputy assistant director of the Counterterrorism Division, where he provided leadership oversight for the FBI’s international terrorism investigations and operations.
Prior to joining the FBI, Mr. DeSarno served as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army assigned to the First Cavalry Division in Fort Hood, Texas. His time in the Army included a deployment to Bosnia-Herzegovina as part of the NATO Stabilization Force monitoring compliance with the Dayton Peace Accords, and apprehending persons indicted for war crimes.