By William Tauro
Tonight I had the absolute extreme honor of being invited to the 56TH ANNUAL NATIONAL / MASSACHUSETTS ITALIAN AMERICAN POLICE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION AWARDS DINNER as an honored guest by my longtime good friend Former Somerville Police Chief Thomas Pasquarello who was also the recipient of the 2024 Saint Michael The Archangel Award and who is being honored tonight as well as for many other recipients of local police officer heroism awards duly deserved at the Sons of Italy in Watertown! Former state police colonel and chief of MIT police John DiFava was the master of ceremonies and he absolutely did do a great job as always honoring these heros! He actually did a grand slam and hit it out of the ballpark!What a true privilege it was!
Thomas Pasquarello Chief Somerville Police Department [Ret.] has been designated a Knight of Michael the Archangel with all the rights, privileges, titles and honors that pertain in this office as Grand Knight of the Order and is inducted into the Knighthood by reason of an act of bravery or service to their community so outstanding that it merits the respect and admiration of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael the Archangel. Through this act, as a Good Samaritan, the Knight designated shall be deemed the respect and admiration of the honors bestowed upon said person. Awarded this 9th day of November, 2024 by the Massachusetts Association of Italian American Police Officers, Inc.
Martin Gabriella, President.
Thomas Pasquarello
Chief, Somerville Police Department (Ret.]
Chief Pasquarello served as a Special Agent for 29 years, with assignments to both the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), where he served in a variety of management positions, including liaison to the US Congress and Chief of operations for offices covering half of the United States. Tom spent most of his early career as a designated undercover agent assigned to offices throughout the world, including Italy, where he spent (10) years infiltrating and dismantling some of the most sophisticated and dangerous mafia networks, cocaine cartels, and terrorist organizations operating globally.
The US Attorney General then promoted Chief Pasquarello to the Senior Executive Service, representing the highest career level within the US Department of Justice. Chief Pasquarello was selected to serve as a US Diplomat in Italy and Thailand for more than a decade and was responsible for directing regional law enforcement operations throughout his area of responsibility, which spanned offices and personnel operating in more than 125 countries within Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Chief Pasquarello graduated from the US Department of State Foreign Service Institute, where he received training in Diplomatic Affairs, including extensive language training in Italian, Spanish, French, and Thai. World leaders have recognized Chief Pasquarello for his efforts, which include the targeting and eventual capture of Monzer al-Kassar, who was involved with the terrorist attack on the Achille Lauro in Italy as well as the arrest of Viktor Bout, the Russian weapons trafficker nicknamed the Lord of War and Merchant of Death, who was arrested in Bangkok as he attempted to provide weapons of mass destruction to terrorist organizations in order to kill Americans.
After his retirement from the Justice Department, Tom served as the Police Chief for the City of Somerville, MA, where his implementation of cutting-edge programs resulted in the decline of crime in the city to record levels.
These new initiatives included the Smart Policing use of predictive analysis and focused deterrence; Jail Diversion, which provided counseling, health services, and job placement to at-risk offenders; Crisis Intervention Training, which the Somerville Police Department was one of the first agencies to implement and train all employees in deconfliction and emotional CPR; and Ministers Against Crime, which brought together members of the clergy and immigrant groups to engage in weekly dialogue sessions and working groups.
These programs were recognized for their effectiveness by the US Department of Justice COPS program, and awards received from a variety of state and national agencies including the National Association of Mental Illness (NAMI) and the Hispanic Chaplains of America which selected Chief Pasquarello for their national award.
Upon retirement from public service, Chief Pasquarello transitioned into corporate security and served as the Business Security Director for General Electric (GE) Aerospace, which includes the security oversight for personnel, facilities, and classified programs. Chief Pasquarello continues to serve with the US Department of Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) and Global Secure Resources Inc., where he provides background assessments, serves as a subject matter expert involving litigation, and conducts threat assessment analysis covering more than 50 countries.
Tom received his Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and Master’s in Public Administration. Tom is an alumnus of Harvard University, Northeastern University, and UMASS/Boston State College. Tom and his wife, Carrie, are the proud parents of Christina, Tommy, and Quentin, all 9 Cambridge Police Officers.