John Anthony Simeone

SIMEONE

JOHN ANTHONY SIMEONE

John Anthony Simeone passed away on December 24, 2023 in St. Louis, Missouri after a long illness surrounded by his family. He was 86.

Born in St. Louis, John was the only son of John and Julie Simeone. After spending his early years working in the family-owned restaurant business, at the time a popular gathering spot located near the city's Washington University, John decided early in life to pursue a career in law enforcement. He became a St. Louis police officer 1964 before joining the FBI as a special agent seven years later. It was a path that took him to Milwaukee,WI, Pittsburgh, PA and then on to Washington, DC where he spent the bulk of his career. As an FBI agent, John worked on many high profile cases and national security matters over the decades, including the kidnapping of newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst in the early 1970's. He later became a founding member of the FBI's famed Hostage Rescue Team (HRT), a special forces-like unit within the bureau borne of the need to counter what had been a growing trend of abductions of Americans by criminals and terrorists â€" from Hearst in California to Americans overseas, especially in places like Lebanon and Iran during the 1980's. He later became deputy commander of the HRT, traveling frequently to advise governments around the world on how to respond to hostage situations and terrorism, while overseeing multi-agency nuclear crisis management exercises at home.

John retired from the FBI in 1990 and resided for a period in the D.C. area where he served as a corporate security advisor to multiple interests including those owned by the Saudi royal family while appearing on television as a counterterrorism expert. He later returned to his native St. Louis where his son Christopher remains a police officer. There, John served as the chief investigator for the St. Louis City Circuit Attorney's office. Later, he co-authored "The Complete Idiot's Guide to the FBI" which was published in 2002.

John is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis. He achieved a Master of Arts from St. Louis University and briefly served in the Marine Corps before being discharged for an injury. He is survived by sons Nicholas Simeone of McLean, VA, Christopher and John Simeone, both of St. Louis, as well as former wife JoAnn Simeone of Fairfax Station, VA.

Services: Visitation at KUTIS AFFTON CHAPEL, 10151 Gravois Rd., St. Louis, MO 63123 on Friday, December 29 at 11 a.m. until the service begins at 2 p.m.