James DeStefano is a Managing Director at 5 Stones intelligence.
Mr. DeStefano is a retired Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Supervisory Special Agent. During his career, he led professionals in crisis management, special operations, criminal investigations, and intelligence collection and designed and managed complex investigations and programs. Mr. DeStefano served as the acting Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the FBI New York, Crisis Management component where he directed crisis incident response and training; special events; executive protection; and the deployment, support and return of personnel on international assignments. In 2013, Mr. DeStefano served as Deputy On-scene Commander following the terrorist attack on the West Gate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya. During that assignment, he developed and implemented strategies to address the operational needs of a multi-national force, while mitigating threats to security, health, and the structural integrity of the crisis site. Throughout that assignment, he developed and shared crisis management and security best practices with Kenyan law enforcement and governmental entities.
Following his retirement from the FBI, Mr. DeStefano served as a Managing Director of the Security Consulting Services Division for an advisory firm in New York City. Mr. DeStefano provided expert security consulting services to a broad range of Clients in the corporate, financial, academic, business, sports, and entertainment industries. He assisted Clients by identifying their personal and business-related threats and vulnerabilities; designed effective risk mitigation strategies; conducted realistic safety and emergency preparedness training exercises; and developed and implemented crisis management and business continuity solutions. He conducted detailed and methodical physical security and emergency preparedness assessments of corporate offices, academic campuses, hospitals, professional sports facilities, and personal residences and offered practical and effective strategies to enhance client security against identified risks.
In addition to serving as a Managing Director at 5 Stones Intelligence, Mr. DeStefano provides leadership coaching to individuals and corporations representing a broad range of business sectors.
Mr. DeStefano received his undergraduate degree from Fordham University and his Juris Doctorate from Seton Hall University School of Law. Mr. DeStefano received his CPP certification from ASIS International in 2015.