Tony Almeida


 * "But if I could do this, if I could save even...one life on the outside, then maybe I'd feel worthy of my wife's love again."
 * &mdash; Tony Almeida, "24: Solitary"

Anthony "Tony" Almeida was a federal agent who worked for CTU Los Angeles from its inception. During that time, he was promoted to CTU Director, and was essential to foiling the terrorist plots on Days 1 and 2; after the latter, he married colleague Michelle Dessler. During Day 3, Tony was arrested and sent to prison on charges of treason after jeopardizing a witness in order to comply with a threat by Stephen Saunders that threatened Michelle's life. After his release and a brief period of joblessness/divorce, Almeida worked for CTU on a provisional basis on Day 4, after which he moved away with and remarried Michelle and they both began working in private security.

In the first hour of Day 5, Tony was badly injured (and Michelle and their unborn son killed) by a car bomb set by Conrad Haas, an assassin working under the Sentox nerve gas conspiracy looking to kill the only people who knew Jack Bauer was alive at the time in order to frame Jack for their murders. After the murder of Michelle, Tony, in a fit of rage, attempted to kill Christopher Henderson, a high-ranking conspirator; but Henderson (intentionally not killing Tony) seriously injured Almeida, sending him into a state of unconsciousness. Henderson successfully fooled nearby paramedics/Jack into thinking that Tony was dead; his body was covertly switched as he regained consciousness.

Falsely thought dead, Tony resurfaced to Jack on Day 7 as an agent of David Emerson's mercenary group, though he was co-operating with Bill Buchanan and Chloe O'Brian partially. He was also a key operative in the conspiracy by Alan Wilson and the Prion variant cabal in their plan to use terror to gain a more active role in the United States' military affairs. However, he was actually helping this organization for the sole purpose of meeting Wilson face-to-face and killing him in revenge for the death of Michelle and their unborn son. However, he was captured by Jack Bauer and the FBI, and was sent to a maximum security prison for his crimes.

Early life and career

 * Main article: Tony Almeida before Day 1

Tony was born in Chicago, Illinois twenty-nine years before Day 1. He earned a combined Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering and Computer Science from San Diego State University, and later a Master of Science degree in Computer Science from Stanford University. Tony served in the United States Marine Corps, ascending to the rank of First Lieutenant and graduating from both the Scout-Sniper School and the Surveillance & Target Acquisition Platoon School. Following his term of duty, he worked as a Systems Validation Analyst with the Transmeta Corporation.

CTU agent
Tony was recruited by the Counter Terrorist Unit pilot program a few years before Day 1. He first met Jack Bauer, then a CIA case worker being vetted for the new agency, when he was assigned to clean up an altercation at St. Monica's Cathedral involving one of Jack's witnesses. Tony expressed his curiosity about Jack's activities that evening and remarked that his behavior was outside protocol, but noted that Jack probably didn't care.

On Jack's first formal day of work, CTU Los Angeles coordinated the sequester of Moira O'Neal, a defector from the IRA. Tony supported the operation from Los Angeles, investigating O'Neal's activities in the area and her meeting with pharmaceutical CEO Michael Donovan.

The night before the Pacific Rim Conference in Los Angeles, Tony followed up a lead on a possible threat to the event by members of Jemaah Islamiyah, and went undercover as an arms dealer to attend an exchange with the terrorist cell. This brought him face-to-face with Jack Bauer, who was working an off-book investigation of Zapata without CTU's knowledge. The next day, Tony and Nina Myers oversaw security at the conference, but the threat had been manufactured as a distraction from Zapata's actual plan.

Along with Bauer, Chet Blackburn, and Gina Costigan, Tony was part of the field team that intercepted Dante Arete at Los Angeles International Airport and stopped his attempted shoot-down of National Express Cargo Flight 111 using the Long Tooth missile launcher. That evening, he partnered with Marine Captain Jessica Schneider to investigate the source of the weapon and its connection to Green Dragon Computers.

Prior to Day 1, Tony distrusted and resented Jack Bauer, the Director at CTU, feeling that he had sold out his own people by turning in Seth Campbell and two other fellow agents for taking bribes. After Jack separated from Nina Myers following their brief affair, Tony entered into a relationship with Nina, but continued to suspect that she and Jack were still together--and had feelings for one another.

Day 1: Palmer assassination threat

 * Read more about Tony Almeida on Day 1

During Day 1, Tony Almeida was the third in command at CTU Los Angeles, working under the direction of Jack Bauer and Nina Myers. He had a rivalry with Jack, causing him to be suspicious of Jack's deviations from protocol throughout the day. However, Tony and Jack learned to trust each other after two moles infiltrating CTU were uncovered.

After Day 1
With Nina Myers imprisoned for committing treason, Tony was promoted to the CTU Chief of Staff. Unfortunately, the death of Teri affected Jack deeply and he resigned as the Director of CTU. George Mason then earned that position, with Tony acting as his second-in-command.

Before the events that took place in Day 2, Tony brought in Paula Schaeffer and he trained her to become a CTU agent. Michelle Dessler was also hired and immediately started a friendship with Tony. She would serve as third-in-command, working under Mason and Tony.

Day 2: Los Angeles nuclear crisis

 * Read more about Tony Almeida on Day 2

During Day 2, Tony worked as the Chief of Staff at CTU Los Angeles under Director George Mason. When CTU learned that a nuclear bomb was set to go off in Los Angeles sometime during the day, CTU informed President David Palmer, who revealed that he believed Jack Bauer would be the only one who could help the investigation.

Both George and Tony called Jack Bauer and requested for him to come in, but Jack ignored all of their calls. President Palmer decided to call Jack and personally request for him to work with CTU on a provisional basis. Jack finally agreed, as a favor to President Palmer and Tony. After learning about the National Security crisis, Bauer told George and Tony he would work with them if they could get his daughter, Kim, out of Los Angeles.

Tony instantly became CTU Director when George Mason stepped down due to radiation poisoning.

After Day 2: Earthquake attack
Tony apprehended Joseph Sin-Chung, who was posing as a crew member of the apprehended cargo boat Lee Jin-Yu. Tony prevented a terrorist threat at the Los Angeles Subway prior to the capture of CTU. During the hour that CTU was held hostage, Tony guided Kim Bauer to encrypt the hard-drive containing the data of the undercover CTU agents, significantly slowing down the terrorists' progress in getting the information.

Shortly after Kim's return to CTU, Tony led one of the tactical teams disarming one of the bombs at a construction site situated along a fault line. Hours after the threat, Tony had to rush to the scene of a crime, which involved a hostage situation with Governor James Radford. After restraining as many confused gunmen as he could, he negotiated with the leader, who was trying to save his sick son. Tony succeeded in calming down the gunman, but the gunman was dead by the time Tony opened the locked door. He started becoming suspicious of Radford as he checked the gunman's body, and his suspicions proved accurate when an assistant of Governor Radford called to set up a meeting at Fisher Pier.

Tony met up with the assistant and was given a keycard to Radford's office, after which a helicopter ambushed the pair, killing the assistant. Tony barely escaped with his life and drove off to the Governor's office building. After dealing with various gunmen on Radford's payroll and rescuing the trapped civilians, Tony found evidence that showed Radford's involvement with the terrorists. It turned out that Radford was seen conversing with Peter Madsen, Joseph Sin-Chung, and an unknown third man, later discovered to be Max. Tony tracked Radford and managed to eavesdrop on his conversation with Max. Radford attempted to walk out, but the assassin Mandy killed Radford before Tony could do anything.

While Jack and Chase were busy at Fort Lesker, Tony, Michelle, and Chappelle discovered that Kate Warner was still alive, but Chappelle restricted Tony from notifying Jack until he completed the mission. A few hours later, after berating Chappelle, Tony headed back out to the field to assist Jack and Chase at the L.A. Docks in a CTU helicopter. Tony picked up Chase first, and piloted the chopper to have Chase provide support fire for Jack before picking him up.

Tony maneuvered the helicopter around the yacht allowing Chase to mow down gunmen firing at them, while Jack rappelled onto the deck of the yacht. As the day ended, Tony stayed on the yacht with Kate to clean up the mess while Chase piloted the helicopter with a wounded Jack to a nearby hospital.

Day 3: Cordilla virus

 * Read more about Tony Almeida on Day 3



At the start of Day 3, Tony was serving as the Director of CTU Los Angeles, when a huge National Security issue arose. Somebody dropped a corpse at the National Health Services building. Sunny Macer identified that the corpse died from the deadly Cordilla Virus, and if the virus were to be released in public, millions of people would die.

Then someone contacted CTU and demanded for the release of Ramon Salazar, or else the United States would suffer an outbreak of the Cordilla virus. Jack Bauer believed that Ramon's brother, Hector Salazar, was demanding for Ramon's release, as Jack spent months undercover, with his partner Chase Edmunds, to bring Salazar in. Tony contacted White House Chief of Staff Wayne Palmer and kept him abrest of the situation. Wayne was convinced that his brother, President David Palmer, would not negotiate with terrorists.

CTU became aware of a northern Mexican connection, and they were convinced teenager Kyle Singer was carrying the virus through the cocaine he received. When Jack, CTU, and NHS stormed Singer's house and discovered the virus was not in the drugs, Jack believed that Singer himself was infected and the actual carrier of the virus. Eventually CTU was tracked Kyle down to a mall, where Tony decided to confront him.

As Tony walked towards Kyle, a Salazar-employed hitman, David Gomez, realized that Kyle was being stalked and moved in to stop Tony. Operative Gael Ortega, who was playing the role of double agent for both CTU and the Salazars, ordered Gomez to stand down. However, Gomez ignored him, approached Tony and fired a bullet into his neck. Jack ran to Tony's side and the injured agent was raced to the hospital, receiving vascular surgery on his gunshot wound. In the panic, Kyle and Gomez both escaped from the mall.



When Tony came out of surgery, he asked his wife Michelle Dessler to update him on any current change. She told him that Jack broke Ramon Salazar out of prison and decided to deliver him to Hector, and she also informed him that they discovered Gael Ortega was a mole. When Tony learned about this, he demanded that Dr. Linzer release him, but they refused without the consent of Michelle. After careful consideration, Michelle finally agreed to sign the papers on Tony's release.

Tony and Michelle arrive back at CTU, and Tony interrupted Ryan Chappelle's interrogation of Gael. Tony explained to Chappelle that Gael has been working with him and Jack on a secret sting operation to neutralize the Cordilla virus. Jack was placed back undercover with the Salazars, who were willing to buy the virus from the seller. Jack would then have CTU infiltrate the Salazars, getting rid of the Cordilla threat for good.

Tony called President Palmer and told him about the situation, then played a video of Jack explaining the operation. Though the president was initially furious for being kept in the dark of the situation, he agreed for Jack to continue working undercover and Tony to do what he can for Jack back at CTU. Though Chappelle was also in rage over being kept out of the loop, he had no choice but to let Tony continue doing his job.

When Tony learns from Kim Bauer that Chase went to Mexico to rescue Jack from the Salazars, despite Chappelle ordering Chase to come back to CTU, Tony had Mexican Intelligence Agent Rafael Gutierrez entice Chase, but before Chase could learn about the undercover operation, Gutierrez was gunned down and the Salazar's men took Chase hostage.

When Kim felt that Tony was making some errors, due to his recent injury, she went to Michelle and complained about this. Not knowing whether Tony was capable to continue acting as the CTU director or not, Michelle decided to go to Ryan Chappelle and review the case over with him.



When Tony was questioned by Chappelle, Tony proved that he was capable enough to handle the job, as it was Kim making the mistakes. Tony felt betrayed by Michelle and he resented her a bit for the next few hours. Though Michelle apologized for doubting his abilities, Tony felt she went to Chappelle to assert her own authority.

Eventually it was learned the other buyer of the virus was no other than Nina Myers, who was working for someone. When Hector began to back off on his plan on buying the virus, Ramon killed him and asked Jack to get Nina to cooperate. Eventually Nina agreed to work with Ramon and Jack, and she bought the virus from Michael Amador. However, before CTU could take the virus from Ramon, he ran off.

Commandos arrived on the scene and Chase assisted Jack in tracking down Ramon. Ramon was willing to release the virus, but it exploded. Jack learned that Amador never had the intention of selling the virus, and he told CTU about this. When the Delta teams tracking Amador are ambushed, Tony tells Jack that they lost Amador and the virus.

Tony had Chase, Jack, and Nina transported back to CTU, and Nina agreed to help if she received a pardon from the president. She had Jack call a number, which caused a worm to feed into CTU's computers. With know way of stopping the worm, Tony requested for Chappelle to drop charges against Chloe O'Brian, who brought an unidentified baby into CTU, as she was the only one who could stop the worm.



With Chloe and the rest of CTU having trouble slowing down the worm, Tony ordered for Jack to have the pilot turn around, as Nina agreed to slow down the worm if she was brought back to Mexico. Jack refused to allow this to happen, and disobeyed Tony's orders. Luckily, Chloe was able to stop the worm, and the plane headed back to Los Angeles.

Eventually, CTU was able to learn about a connection between Amador and a man named Marcus Alvers, and Tony decides to interrogate Nina about Alvers. Nina tried to tempt him by bringing up their past relationship, and Tony is unable to get any information out of her. Tony decides to bring in the interrogation specialist, who gives Nina cc's. When Tony believes Nina is falling under anesthesia, he tells Jack and Chappelle about this, and Nina is able to escape.

Nina is eventually found by Kim Bauer, and she is shot and killed by Jack when he realizes she no longer knows any useful information. Chloe is then able to track down Amador's location, and Jack and Chase interrogate him. They allow Amador to escape, and they learn that Alvers is planning to release the virus in the Chandler Plaza Hotel. Amador is then killed in a car explosion, and Jack is contacted by the holder of the virus, who requests to speak with the president.

Michelle decides to go to the Chandler Plaza Hotel, against Tony's wishes. When it becomes apparent that Alvers will release the virus before NHS arrives with the biohazard suits, Michelle decides to enter the building and any willing agents follow her. She alarms the hotel's security and managers of the threat, and though she is able to bring Alvers into custody, the virus is released just after Gael finds the vial.



When Tony learns that the virus was released in the hotel, he asks Michelle to leave, but she insists at staying and she would end up spreading the virus if she did leave. When Gael starts to show immediate symptoms, it is learned that Alvers inserted a compound that speeds of the affects of the virus. CTU is then able to send photos to Michelle, and Alvers identifies that Stephen Saunders is the man he is working for.

When Tony shows more concern for Michelle than all the other people in the hotel, Chappelle is convinced that Tony is incapable of handling the situation. Chappelle tells Tony to assume the worst, and Chappelle allows Tony to send suicide capsules to the hotel, which would be available for anyone who wants to end their pain and suffering.

Tony struggles with leading the investigation and being there for his wife. When CTU learns that Saunders has a daughter, Tony decides to have her switch with one of their agent's. When Kim proves to be the only close match for Jane Saunders at the current time, Kim agrees to go into the field, despite protest from Jack. Tony then informs the rest of CTU that Chappelle was killed in the line of duty, when in fact he was executed by Jack and deliver to Saunders' men, by the orders of President Palmer. Tony is later relieved when he gets a call from Michelle, who tells him she is immune to the virus and is going to head back to CTU.



When CTU is able to track down Saunders location, Saunders finds himself trapped and he calls Tony, telling him that he has Michelle and he provides proof. Saunders tells Tony that he will kill Michelle, if Tony doesn't clear a path. Tony clears a path way, enabling Saunders escape, and when Jack learns about Tony's order, he becomes furious. Tony creates an excuse and tells Jack that someone in his team made a mistake.

Tony deletes all images of Saunders leaving the building off satellite, and he lies about Michelle's whereabouts. Saunders then calls and demands for Tony to transport Jane to a location. Saunders also demands that CTU stop their phone trace, and he does so by locking Chloe in the tech room. Tony then resigns and allows Jack to serve as the Director. When Jack finds Chloe, he initiates a lockdown, but Tony is able to escape the building with Jane.

Eventually Jack is able to find Michelle through satellite, and Tony agrees to work with Jack and CTU, but he will not sacrifice his wife in the line of duty. During the trade, Michelle reunites with Tony, and Jane runs from Saunders' men. Saunders is led into the open because of this and CTU is able to successfully capture him, and kill all the hostiles.

Brad Hammond soon arrives at CTU, and tells Tony that he committed treason, and that he could serve at least 20 years of prison time or may even receive the death penalty. When Jack needs help with tactical, in order to contain the last vial of the Cordilla virus, Hammond reinstates Tony for the hour. After providing help, Tony is taken back into custody, and Tony tells Michelle he will be able to survive prison knowing she is still alive.

After Day 3: Federal prosecution


Facing the death penalty due to the fact he committed treason, Tony was vouched for by both President David Palmer and Jack Bauer, as Tony managed to be a huge help towards the end of Day 3. Tony received a reduced sentence and he only had to face seven months of jail time.

However, Tony was very withdrawn when he was released from prison and he had trouble opening to Michelle about his feelings. Eventually Tony became a bitter drunk, which ultimately drove Michelle away. Michelle filed for divorce and earned a position at Homeland Security Restructuring in Seattle, where she would work with Bill Buchanan. When Michelle left him, Tony became even more bitter and refused to find a job. He also began a relationship with Jen Slater, a younger woman who had a job at a bar.

Day 4: Reactivation

 * Read more about Tony Almeida on Day 4





When Jack Bauer and Audrey Raines followed up on a lead at Felsted Security, fellow CTU agents were gunned down by men sent by Henry Powell. Jack needed help, so he called the only one he could trust. Eventually Jack ran out of ammunition and he was being approached by Powell's guards, but Tony arrived and killed them, saving Jack and Audrey's lives.

Tony decided to bring Audrey and Jack back to his home, as Jack was convinced there was a mole inside the agency, and he informed Secretary of Defense James Heller with this information. However, Tony insisted he did not want to get involved in whatever National Security crisis threatened America. After meeting Tony's girlfriend Jenny, Jack realized Tony was miserable and he asked him to help him follow up on a lead.

Jack and Tony were able to track down Powell, who was in Van Nuys trying to escape via helicopter. Jack was able to take Powell into custody, but just when they started to cuff him, Powell was assassinated by one of Habib Marwan's guards. Tony initially decided to stop his involvement in the case at that point, but Jack managed to convince him to help for a bit longer.



Eventually Tony and Jack were led to a hotel room that Dina Araz was staying in. Dina had a serious bullet wound and Lee Castle began to inflict pain on her, but Tony grabbed him in order to stop him from hurting her. They decided to cut Dina a deal; they would offer to protect her son Behrooz Araz from his father Navi and give Behrooz a pardon if Dina gave all her information on Navi's activities and Marwan's plans to CTU. With a mother's deep love for her son, Dina agreed to it if they could save Behrooz.

When Navi learned that CTU was on to him, he took Behrooz hostage and sealed himself and Behrooz in the basement of the Lindauer Memorial Hospital. Eventually Jack was able to sneak into the basement through a laundry chute and Navi eventually surrendered, but Behrooz shot him in the back, which ultimately killed him. Jack had to follow up on another lead involving Paul Raines, and he asked Tony to bring Behrooz and Dina back to CTU.

With help from Secretary Heller, Jack was able to convince Erin Driscoll to bring Tony back on a provisional basis, doing tactical for Jack. When Erin's daughter Maya committed suicide, Driscoll was unable to meet the expectations of CTU Director, and Heller convinced her to step down from her post. After learning of Tony's past experience at CTU, Heller agreed to Tony serving as the CTU director until the replacement from Division arrived. Tony was shocked when he learned that replacement was Michelle Dessler.

Jack and Paul were soon led to McLennen-Forster, which employed Marwan under the alias of Harris Barnes. When CTU began to lose contact with Jack, Tony sent an IM to Jack and told him that an electromagnetic pulse bomb had been set off. Jack had Paul print any information about Marwan's work at the company there, and it was clear McClennan-Forster was trying to cover up any involvement they had with Marwan.



Michelle soon arrived at CTU, and she gave Tony level two clearance. Michelle attitude was very strained towards him, but when Audrey Raines told her about how he saved her and Jack's life, Michelle took his opinions more seriously and began to accept him more. Eventually, CTU agents arrived to help rescue Jack and Paul, but Paul was gunned down when attempting to save Jack's life.

When Curtis Manning and Marianne Taylor went to Powell's office to obtain information, Curtis went dark and soon Jack was lead there. Curtis and Jack eventually found Marwan but he killed and impersonated a CTU agent, which allowed him to escape. Afterward, it was decided that the best way to locate Marwan would be to offer Dina a life with her son if she would go undercover, pretending to hold Jack hostage.

CTU tracked Dina and Jack's location via satellite in hopes that they would be able to pinpoint Marwan's location. Dina and Jack were successful in meeting with Marwan, but he saw through their act and had Dina executed for her betrayal while Jack was taken prisoner. Marwan later contacted CTU and offered to exchange Jack for Behrooz Araz. Michelle agreed to the exchange, but had a tracking device planted on Behrooz.

Bill Buchanan from Division soon arrived and took control of the situation. Tony was at first uncomfortable with this, having learned that while he was in prison Bill and Michelle had known each other. After Michelle left him they became romantically involved.



CTU uncovered one of Marwan's close associates, Mitch Anderson, a former pilot in the US Army. Jack arrived at Anderson's apartment and after a struggle with Nicole, a member of Marwan's cell, he obtained a hard drive that contained the schematics of a stealth fighter. Jack relayed the information to CTU and they soon discovered that Anderson planned to use the stealth fighter to shoot down Air Force One. CTU warned President John Keeler and Jack attempted to dissuade Anderson from shooting the plane down, but Anderson refused to listen and followed through with his plan.

After obtaining the nuclear football, Jack discovered that Marwan had stolen a section of the football, specifically the locations of the government's warheads. CTU then learned that Joe Prado may have had some sensitive information about Marwan, but President Charles Logan refused to allow CTU to use physical interrogation. Prado was released and Jack knocked out Prado's US Marshal and was able to get information out of Prado by force.

Tony and Michelle continued to have problems, as it was clear they both loved each other. President Logan then had Jack arrested for using force, which caused CTU to lose Marwan. Eventually Logan allowed Jack to be released, and Mike Novick brought in former President David Palmer to serve as acting president.

CTU learned that a man named Lee Jong knew information about Marwan, but he went to the Chinese Consulate in order to prevent himself from being questioned. President Palmer authorized Jack to lead a covert operation to kidnap Jong from the consulate, which ended in the Chinese consul dying from friendly fire. Tony then asked Michelle to leave CTU and everything behind in order for them to have future.



When Jack needed to follow up a lead as Richard Heller was able to provide a connection to Marwan, Jack wasn't able to bring Curtis along, and he requested Tony instead. Just before Tony left, Michelle agreed to his offer and they both were on the same page. Unfortunately, Marwan's associate Mandy killed Agent Castle and took Tony hostage.

Learning about Tony's past acts to protect Michelle, Mandy called Michelle and asked her to clear a path for her or she would kill Tony. Originally Michelle planned on doing so, but she told Buchanan about it and they decided to set up a stakeout. When Mandy realized Michelle was double-crossing her, she blew herself and Tony up. However, Jack soon realized it was a decoy, and that Tony was still alive.

Jack was able to find Tony and Mandy in the garage of the motel building, but Mandy had a gun to his head. Mandy asked if Jack was willing to see Tony sacrificed, and Curtis was able to sneak behind her. Michelle, who was breaking down in her car, was informed that Tony was alive and was on his way back to CTU. Eventually Marwan was taken into custody after releasing a missile, but he slipped and fell from a building. Luckily the missile was prevented from hitting any targets.



When Cheng Zhi learned that Jack was the leader of the covert operation that raided the consulate, he demanded that President Logan hand him over. Logan agreed, but Chief of Staff Walt Cummings suggested Jack had sensitive National Security information that he would expose. Cummings sent Dale Spalding to kill Jack, but Mike Novick learned of the plan and informed President Palmer. Palmer was able to warn Jack, who tried to escape from CTU.

Jack ended up faking being shot to death with the help of beta blockers to stop his heart, Tony was able to revive him with epinephrine. With help from Tony, Michelle, President Palmer, and Chloe O'Brian, Jack was able to conceal that his death was faked and he was able to walk away into the sunrise, with a new identity.

After Day 4: Retirement
Tony and Michelle remarried and started up their own security company. Among their business associates was Rick Rosen. Michelle was pregnant with the couple's first child at the onset of Day 5.

Day 5: Sentox conspiracy


During the opening moments of Day 5, former President David Palmer was assassinated in the penthouse of his brother Wayne as they went over David's memoirs. This news quickly broke throughout America, and Tony and his wife Michelle were devastated over the news.

Tony and Michelle had an important business meeting with Rick Rosen planned for the morning, but Michelle insisted on contacting CTU to help them out with the assassination investigation. Tony objected to this idea, suggesting CTU had capable agents, while Michelle felt their experience was needed. Just as Michelle left the house, Tony called Rosen to inform him that Michelle won't make it to their meeting. However, as he left him a message, he decided to join her. At this point, a car bomb went off outside, killing Michelle, and knocking Tony down. As Tony stood up, he desperately ran outside only to find Michelle lying under some of the debris of the car. As he embraced her, the car's gas tank exploded, critically injuring Tony.

Tony was brought to the medical center at CTU Los Angeles, as Bill Buchanan felt Tony would be more vulnerable to a second attempt at a local hospital, and he also believed that Michelle's death and Tony's attempted assassination were somehow connected to the death of David Palmer.

It was soon learned that Jack Bauer was still alive and responsible for the deaths, but his name was later cleared when it became apparent someone was trying to set him up. When Jack Bauer came back to CTU, an agent informed him that Tony Almeida was requesting to speak to him. Jack went to see Tony, and a man named Hank attempted to kill Jack. Jack stabbed him in the neck with scissors, and learned that there was a mole inside CTU, as there was no other way for Hank to get into the building. It was learned that Spenser Wolff gave Hank clearance, under the orders of Walt Cummings, President Charles Logan's Chief of Staff.



At 5 pm, Tony awoke and requested to speak to CTU. The doctors told Bill Buchanan that if he learned about Michelle's death, it could cause his recovery to setback. Bill spoke to Tony and told him that Michelle was recovering in a local hospital, and he would be able to see her soon. Tony could tell that Bill was hiding something and he looked up Michelle's profile on a CTU computer, and discovered the word deceased plastered over it.

Tony was devastated over the death of his wife, and he went back to medical. During that same hour, a man named Ostroff entered the building by using Lynn McGill's keycard. He released Sentox nerve gas into CTU, killing many of CTU's personnel. Tony was in one of the sealed areas and was spared from the deadly nerve gas.

When Tony learned that he was in the same room as Christopher Henderson, who ordered the hit on his wife, he plotted to kill him. However, Jack was able to convince Tony to hold back, as Henderson had vital information that could help the investigation on Palmer's assassination and Vladimir Bierko's next plan.



By 7:50pm, Tony was tired of waiting and knocked out Rick Burke. Tony took a syringe and filled it with an overdose of hyoscine-pentothal, preparing to stab Henderson with it. However, Tony found himself unable to kill Henderson, who suddenly woke up and shocked Tony by stabbing him with the syringe, though Henderson purposely missed an artery, as he had no intention of killing him. Tony fell to the floor, and Jack, who was running to medical to try to stop Tony, arrived and witnessed him seizing. He held Tony as he began to lose consciousness. Referring to Michelle, he said, "She's gone, Jack." He was clinically dead for a short time; however, very shortly afterward he was resuscitated in secret by agents working for David Emerson.

After Day 5: Believed dead
After being "dead" for approximately ten minutes, Tony was covertly taken by David Emerson's men, who then revived him with a hypothermic compound. Emerson, who hired former special forces soldiers to work for him, convinced Tony that the government should pay for what it did to Michelle. Tony chose to stay with Emerson and worked for him, committing criminal acts as a mercenary. He rose to become the leader of Emerson's crew, which he headed for over 3 years.

While working for Emerson, Tony began to search for the man responsible for Michelle's death. After 3 years of searching he discovered Alan Wilson was ultimately behind it, and he was hiding behind a group of businessmen. It took him another year to get Wilson to agree to meet, which would happen after proved himself as a true believer in Wilson's cause. During this time Tony began a relationship with Cara Bowden, a lieutenant in Wilson's organization.

Sometime before Day 7, Tony was tasked with leading Emerson's team in stealing electronic components that would be used to build a device that could break through the United States' CIP firewall. He also learned of Iké Dubaku's network of traitors throughout the government, so enlisted the help of Bill Buchanan and Chloe O'Brian to bring down Dubaku and expose the traitors, telling them that the risk to innocent life had made him reconsider his loyalties. However his main aim was always to bring down Alan Wilson's group, and he had enlisted Bill and Chloe to help track down all the elements of the cabal and bring them down after Wilson was killed.

Day 7: Vendetta

 * Read more about Tony Almeida on Day 7



At 8:03 a.m., Tony, along with henchman Masters, kidnapped Michael Latham from his car in Washington, D.C. They took him back to their hideout and forced him to build a device that would be able to penetrate the Department of Homeland Security's CIP firewall. Tony was captured when Jack Bauer was subpoenaed by the FBI to help in the investigation, but he still managed to inform Jack of his covert operation to bring down the corrupt government together with Bill and Chloe. Jack began to help them, which led to a successful destruction of a threat against the President by Sangalan Colonel Iké Dubaku.



At 2:56, when Jack and Bill planned on going to the White House to talk with the President, Tony decided to stay and follow up on a lead from someone inside David Emerson's crew. He met with Jack later at 5:56 in front of the Capitol Building and told him that his source had revealed him of an impending attack against the President on the following hours. He also told Jack that his source didn't survive his interrogation. This intel helped Jack to alert the President of Benjamin Juma's siege on the White House.

Tony then learned of a second attack from Jack regarding a biological weapon and the Starkwood compound. As fugitives, he and Jack had to go in alone, and whilst Jack temporarily managed to secure the weapon, Tony was captured and tortured by Starkwood. He was saved by the FBI who attempted to find and take the bio-weapon, but Starkwood mercenaries refused to let them search the compound, threatening gunfire if they did so. However, he was able to sneak back into the compound, identifying the canisters of the bioweapon. He destroyed the Python missiles that were loaded with it using C-4.



Once taken into federal custody after Starkwood was raided by the FBI, he appeared to help Larry Moss take down Galvez who had escaped the compound with a small canister containing the pathogen. After Moss was shot, Tony betrayed him by smothering him to death. When Jack realized that Galvez may have had a second partner, Tony did his best to lie and cover up his own involvement. Eventually Jack blew the whole thing open when he was informed that Tony's "source" remained alive and showed no signs of Tony's allegedly brutal interrogation. Confronted by Jack, Tony watched as his friend had a seizure before escaping the scene, shooting dead two FBI agents in the process.

Tony and Bowden proceeded with a scheme which was approved by Alan Wilson and cabal of prion developers in order to shift the day's events towards framing the Muslims, specifically, a man named Jibraan Al-Zarian by forging false evidence and documents under his name and linking him to the last remaining prion variant threat.



Taken into custody after the threat was averted, Tony was broken out by Jack, who was under duress. He suggested that they harvest the pathogen off of Jack, but as Tony later revealed to Jack, it was just a play to get to Alan Wilson, the man responsible for Michelle's death. Tony planned to blow Wilson up with Jack covered in C4, but his plan failed when the FBI raided their location. He killed Bowden and confronted Wilson, yelling that he was responsible not only for Michelle's life, but the life of his son, with whom Michelle was pregnant. Before he could take out Wilson, Renee and Jack both incapacitated him. Tony screamed at Jack in despair and fury as he was taken away by the authorities, and taken to a holding room, where he sat alone, his eyes filled with hatred.

After Day 7: Incarceration


Eight years into his lifetime sentence at a federal prison, Tony appeared before the prison administrator to request his release from solitary confinement, stating that his record would allow him to infiltrate the terrorist and criminal elements in general population and inform on them for the authorities. Appearing genuinely remorseful, Almeida begged for the opportunity to redeem himself and feel worthy of his late wife's love again. However, Vanessa Diaz, the U.S. attorney at the hearing, read for the judge a transcript of a phone call between Tony and an associate after Tony's appeal was denied two years prior: Tony told the unidentified man that he wanted the judge's wife and children murdered in front of him as retribution. Taken aback, the administrator denied Tony's request, causing Tony to attack Diaz in a murderous rage. The guards promptly intervened and escorted him back to his cell.

In the struggle, however, Tony managed to steal Diaz's glasses and take them back to his cell undetected. A display in the lens contained blueprints for the facility and details of an escape plan. The whole incident had been staged by Diaz and a third party to orchestrate Almeida's escape.

Character information

 * In its earliest incarnation, the character was named Andrew Geller; envisioned as, in Carlos Bernard's words, "a backbiting techie Jewish guy, a real climber. I was like, 'Why are they sending this to me? To begin with I'm Hispanic.' Fifteen minutes before we were about to begin shooting we were trying to pick out names for the character and the name we came up with was Tony Almeida, but the legal department wouldn't let us use it, I don't know why. But they said that I could be called Tonio Almeida. Tonio? That's like a stripper's name. So we were filming the very first scene, Kiefer walking down CTU, and he turns to me and says, 'Sorry man, I can't call you Tonio, I'm just gonna call you Tony.' I owe Kiefer everything: Tonio's the name of a guy who gets killed in the first episode."
 * Tony has a Chicago Cubs coffee mug on his desk. Carlos Bernard, who plays Tony, was born in Chicago. He is also seen drinking a beer from this mug at his home during Season 4, and it was on his kitchen counter right before the explosion during Season 5. Curiously, according to Operation Hell Gate, Tony is from the South side of Chicago, which in real life is where the White Sox play. However, geographical location does not always determine fan loyalty in the city's two baseball teams.
 * Tony Almeida is a playable character in 24: The Game.
 * Tony's character has changed substantially over the seasons, developing from a somewhat cocky CTU tech to a fearless, trustworthy agent who'll always try to do the right thing. However, in contrast to Jack's character, Tony's character is subject to his emotions much more and his humanity is what ultimately led to his supposed death - not being able to kill a purportedly defenseless man in cold blood, even though that man had taken away the only thing that mattered to Tony: the love of his life, Michelle, who, when she was killed, carried their first child.
 * Since Michelle's pregnancy wasn't mentioned until Season 7, Tony may have only found out about it when he went underground after his fake death in Day 5, thus making it easier for him to seek revenge when he encountered Alan Wilson.
 * According to Michael Ausiello from TVGuide.com, the producers considered bringing Tony back in the final scene of the Day 6 season finale, but ultimately chose not to. Howard Gordon stated in a podcast that while it was considered, ultimately bringing back a dead character would have been a bad decision. Nevertheless, he was brought back for the premiere of Season 7.
 * Tony's kill count through all seasons is 17.
 * Tony is allergic to penicillin.
 * In the first season of the Indian version of 24, Tony's counterpart is Tejpal Singh. In the second season his counterpart is Vedant Acharya.
 * While taunting Jack in the final hour of Day 7, Tony expresses pride that he, unlike Jack, was responsible for saving the lives of civilians (i.e. how he tipped off Jack with the White House siege) and that he rejects the "crazy ideology" shared by Jonas Hodges and the rest of the Prion variant cabal. However, this is massively at odds and is blatantly hypocritical considering Tony's brazen and inconsiderate attempt to attack Washington with Jibraan Al-Zarian, a plot he made no effort to stop.

"Death"

 * Tony was originally supposed to die on several occasions, the first being when he was shot in the neck at the beginning of Day 3, the second time in Mandy's car after it exploded towards the end of Day 4, the third time he was supposed to die with Michelle when their car exploded in Day 5, and lastly when he was supposedly murdered by Christopher Henderson on "Day 5: 7:00pm-8:00pm".
 * It was also admitted in a podcast that the writers had planned for Tony to hunt down Henderson to get revenge for Michelle's death, where he would ultimately be killed by Henderson. However, they said they found it too hard to work into the main plot of the series and decided to kill him off. However, the revenge plot was eventually worked into "Day 7: 7:00am-8:00am," where he seeks to carry out his vendetta against Alan Wilson.
 * Because Tony's "death" came in the final seconds of "Day 5: 7:00pm-8:00pm," there was much debate in the week following the episode as to whether or not he was truly, permanently dead. In an interview on (the day after the episode aired), Executive Producer Howard Gordon refused to confirm Tony's status, and said that viewers would have to tune in to the next episode to find out for sure. After that episode aired both he and Bernard gave interviews to various entertainment magazines confirming Tony was truly dead. They explained they felt the character had run out of story lines and it was the best fit for everybody.
 * Tony's apparent death scene appears to mirror that of Teri Bauer's. Their deaths were at CTU Los Angeles and Jack had cradled both of them in his arms while breaking down to tears.
 * Tony's temporary death was similar to Jack's at the end of Season 4. They both were revived with some kind of medicine, Jack being revived by epinephrine and Tony being revived by a hypothermic compound, and they both appeared dead, Jack using so-called "beta blocker" drugs to reduce his heart rate to a virtually undetectable level and one of Tony's crucial arteries being missed by Christopher Henderson, and thus their bodies were able to be revived.
 * Tony stated in "Day 7: 11:00am-12:00pm" that he was dead for seven minutes. Normally this would be impossible, as the brain would die without oxygen after three minutes. That said, the brain has lower oxygen requirements when the body is kept at a colder temperature due to a slower metabolic rate, making this scenario plausible.
 * It's also important to note that there is a difference between being clinically dead, and being brain dead. Even with being clinically dead, the body still has enough oxygen stored inside for at least two to five minutes to keep the brain active, giving the explanation even more plausibility.

Appearance notes

 * Tony has the third highest number of episode appearances. For comprehensive episode counts for all the re-appearing characters, see multi-season recurring characters.
 * Tony is tied with Dana Walsh for having the most appearances in one season as an antagonist; both appear as antagonists in 20 episodes of Seasons 7 and 8 respectively.
 * He is the only major character alongside Jack Bauer, David Palmer and Aaron Pierce to have appeared in each of the first 5 seasons.
 * Days 2 and 3 are the only seasons in which Tony appears in all 24 episodes.
 * Of the main characters in the first three seasons, Tony is one of 4 that are still alive, the others being Jack Bauer, Kim Bauer and Kate Warner.