Officer who helped keep Obama and Trump safe retires
Joe Furniss helped to protect former US presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump
- Published
A police officer who helped to protect US presidents during their visits to the UK has retired after serving for more than two decades.
Joe Furniss, from Grindon in Sunderland, joined Northumbria Police in 2001 after wanting to be a front-line officer in the city ever since "I was a lad".
During his career, the 51-year-old was called to help with presidential visits, but also managed murder scenes and assisted in searches for missing people.
Mr Furniss, who was last year named the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) National Response Officer of the Year, hung up his helmet, earlier.
Mr Furniss, who started his career at Gilbridge station, said: "The unpredictability of what each day might bring made it look like such an exciting job to do.
“I’ve always been the type of person to put my hand up to get involved and do something different."
Northumbria Police previously ran some operations from Gilbridge station, which closed in 2015
He was often deployed as part of a team to help keep Barack Obama and more recently, Donald Trump safe from potential threats during official visits to England.
The Sunderland AFC fan also played his part in keeping fans safe during Wear-Tyne derbies over the years.
But he admitted his "proudest achievement" came when he was asked to serve during the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic games.
However, he said it had been a "privilege" to mainly serve the city he was "born and bred in".
The Sunderland-born officer was recognised by police chiefs last year
He said: "[I was able to] look out for people and keep them safe and support those who were quite often at their lowest ebb when coming into contact with police.
“This is my city - and you do feel protective of it."
He said that retirement "does feel strange", but he was "proud to have had the career I’ve had, caring for the people of Sunderland."
“I’ve loved it from start to finish," he added.
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