On April 25, 2019, the Hotel Association of New York City held a Hotel Industry Security & Safety Seminar at the Lotte New York Palace exclusively for Association members. Commissioner James P. O’Neill, C. Bryan Paarmann, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Jessica Corey, Deputy Inspector, NYPD and Matthew McKeon, Deputy Federal Security Director, DHS-TSA addressed our members on critical issues which currently confront the hospitality industry in our city.
The topics included International Hotel Incidents, Hotel Crime Prevention and Procedures for Weapons Found in Guest Rooms.
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International Hotel Incidents
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 Special Agent in Charge C. Bryan Paarmann spoke to members about the threats posed to hotels internationally. He used the terrorist bombing in Nairobi, Kenya at the DusitD2 hotel earlier this year as an example of the ongoing hotel threat.
The incident, caused by the Somalia-based terrorist group Al-Shaabab, involved a 20-hour siege leaving 11 Kenyans, several foreigners and one American dead with at least 700 people escaping to safety.
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Hotel Crime Prevention
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 Deputy Inspector Jessica Corey addressed the group on hotel crime prevention. She offered suggestions that may work to reduce the rate of crime incidents within hotels. Deputy Inspector Corey explained the NYPD’s Neighborhood Policing initiative and urged hotels to identify and develop relationships with their Neighborhood Coordination Officers and shared a link for this purpose:
She also provided tips related to video surveillance systems, alarms, trespass/burglary/larceny prevention, suicides and overdoses, guest information security and other topics related to hotel security.
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Procedures for Weapons Found in Guest Rooms
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 Deputy Federal Security Director Matthew McKeon advised our members of the crucial job that hundreds of Transportation Security Administration officers do on a daily basis to maintain the safety of travelers, which is of critical importance to tourism. He also addressed the possibility of weapons (such as guns) entering into hotels, pointed out that real guns may sometimes look like toy guns and vice versa, and suggested procedural steps for hotels to take in the event that an employee finds a gun on the premises.
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We urge our members to take advantage of future events such as this one to acquire the latest information on hotel security. Members can also attend our regular Security/Safety Committee meetings. If you are not receiving notices of the meetings or of other Security-related information, please contact Jimmy Chin at Jimmychinclsd@gmail.com.