Letters from a Private Investigator IX

We have worked on over 400 cases in Indonesia, and as you may imagine in the field of private investigation we are always coming across some very heartbreaking stories. These range from infidelity cases, to abducted children to people being conned out of large amounts of money.

Here is another of our true case histories, and this is one that will remain with me in all its details I am sure forever. It will be stuck firmly in my mind as perhaps the cruelest money-making scam I have come across.

I am sure worse things happen, and scams and cons that have stronger self-serving motives and are more gruesome than this happen.

Also, I would never want to compare one person’s pain and misery against another. I am not saying here that in this particular case the pain caused is worse than any other horror story I have come across. Nor am I saying it isn’t. Only would I venture to claim that this case is particularly twisted.

I think also in life we may think we come across evil all the time, but I don’t think, fortunately, that we do. After reading this brief case history you can judge if indeed, as I believe, it is an act of evil.

Con Background

Just after Christmas last year I received a phone call from an American man.

He told me that he had had an Indonesian wife for ten years and that they had a  son 7 years previously.

He was calling from America although he had just returned from Sumatera and Lombok (an Indonesian holiday destination) where he had been trying to figure out some answers.

Basically a couple of weeks before contacting me his wife had called him and told them their son had died from a swimming accident in Lombok when she and him had taken a short holiday there. They were based in Sumatera and my client would visit regularly – four or five times a year since the birth of his son.

He then flew directly to Sumatera to see his wife. She was able to offer little information only saying their son had died, and that he should forget about it. There was no death certificate and no official report records.

He flew to Lombok where he walked the beaches and visited police stations asking coast guards and the authorities if they had heard of the drowning of a young boy recently.

No one could offer any help.

This is when he called me.

My initial reaction was one of disbelief. Disbelief that there had actually been a death. The fact that there was no report made of the drowning and no inquest meant that officially the boy was only missing.

Worryingly also if the facts as reported by the wife were indeed true then she would be guilty of a highly criminal act – not reporting a fatal accident.

Our Task

My client wanted me to go to Sumatera and try and figure out what really happened.

He gave me a very thorough briefing of the various people in the extended family circle, and also of the nanny, who had helped in looking after his son since his birth.

Con Uncovered

I spent a week in the Sumateran countryside unknotting this whole sordid scam.

Without going into all the details and the process needed the fundamentals of the case came to light as follows:

1: My client’s wife had never had a baby 7 years ago. She had told my client that she had had a baby boy but this had been a lie.

2: She had “rented” a baby that she would bring out to stay with them when my client visited. At times this entailed renting the boy for long stretches such as when they took a two-month break together to Lombok.

When my client left Indonesia the boy was returned to his real parents. Although when the boy was with my client the real mother stayed close acting as the “nanny”.

3: The real mother and father of the boy had decided to end the rental arrangement. I was told there had been some disagreement and also I gathered they felt guilty of continuing with the charades and lies.

4: My client had of course been paying for the upkeep of his son – monthly allowances, kindergarten, nanny costs, medical care etc. His wife had set up this whole scam as a way to get money from him.

Sadly this scam might have been instigated by my client’s wife in compliance with the real parents, but quite a few other people were aware what had been going on for seven years and had kept quiet. That is until my visit. Perhaps a line had been crossed when the story that the boy had died was used as an excuse to explain the boy not being able to show up any more. Whatever the reason for their newfound honesty I heard the true story from a few people.

5: Indeed I met the real mother and the boy and spoke with him and his mother as he sat close by his mother. When I showed the boy a picture of my client he called him “daddy’. His mother explained that he had been taught to address my client as such since birth.

The Victims

This scam has two central victims, the boy, and of course, arguably the main victim,  my client.

I hope that the impact on the boy will be minimal. OK he called my client “daddy” but hopefully this was just a word similar to people calling unrelated people “uncle”. Of course also if there is anything positive from this whole case it is that the boy had to drowned.

I often think about many of my client’s and feel great sadness for the awful things that happen to them. One good part of my work as a Private Investigator is stopping a toxic situation so people can recover, and move out of a darkness and onto a better life.

This case though, months on, remains with me and I pray that my client will be well soon. I know he was devastated and still has trouble sleeping.

His financial loss is nothing compared to the heartbreak and confusion. To go through seven years believing you have a son, that you care for and love. Imagine chatting to strangers and taking out your wallet to show a picture of your son with pride. To be told that boy is dead and then to find out there was never a son in the first place.

Lets not forget though the other victims here. Victims that could perhaps go unnoticed. My client had a brother and a sister who both had children. His father had died but his mother was still alive. He also had children from a previous marriage. So all these people had either a nephew, a cousin, half-brother or a grandson. I was told an aunt had a picture of her nephew on the wall in their house, the grandmother on her mantelpiece, and all the relatives would send presents every Christmas.

At the end my client told me he was too distraught to speak to anyone at the time, and needed to figure out what he would do next, but he asked me to leave a message to his “son” (he still called him his son).

I gave the message: “your American daddy loves you very much and he is sorry that he can not come to see you just now. He bought you a train, a football and a Chelsea kit for Christmas. You can get the presents from the house in xxxxx road where you stayed with your American daddy. Your mummy knows where this is”.

This was an evil, cruel and callous scam.

Letters from a Private Investigator VIII

Spyware: Useful Or An Intrusion Of Privacy

Earlier, if you wanted to keep an eye on your spouse, you would have to rummage through his or her drawer and cupboard to find secret letters and keepsakes. The later decades introduced security locks and codes to help secure personal information from prying eyes. People have now started storing information on their smartphones and, more recently, tablets, in password-protected files and folders. Similar security measures can be adopted for calls and text messages.

The field of science and technology is a queer one. For every new item or facility it creates, it also offers an antidote. This explains the creation and launch of cell phone spyware.

Spyware – An Introduction

Spyware are software applications that enable users to gather confidential information about a person or organization without their knowledge. Such kinds of tracking software applications are typically used to monitor cell phone activity, but they can be used on tablet and computers as well.

The phone spyware applications are installed on a device, secretly. Once installed on the phone or computer, the spyware exports varied details including call logs, text messages sent and received, mobile internet connections, web pages browsed and the phone’s physical location.

Normally the data is exported to a cloud server where the person spying can access the date for viewing.

A few highly advanced applications for telephones also allow users to listen to phone conversations, and use the phone as a microphone – someone spying can listen to a conversation in a room where the telephone is. The owner of the phone, tablet or computer does not have the slightest hint that private information is being transferred to a third-party via the tracking software application.

Types of Spyware

1) Most are in the form of concealed malware that generally tags along with free downloads or gains access to your system when you visit pornographic sites. As soon as they gain entry, they set up automatically and start leaking out private and confidential information.

2) The other type includes software applications that are purchased and installed on the device one intends to track. After the application has been successfully installed, the user only has to log in to the app website to track movements and access your information.

Who can use Cell Phone Spyware?

Spyware has earned a bad name because it is largely used by criminals and stalkers. Gathering information covertly might also not sound like a very good idea to you. However, it isn’t bad if it is for the opposite person’s good or the good of the people at large.

Computer and cell phone spyware were used to launch successful business marketing campaigns. By monitoring a person’s use of the internet including the websites visited and the pages viewed, business owners attempted to tweak their marketing strategies and thereby reach their target audience.

Parents and spouses make up a large percent of commercial spyware users. As far as parents are concerned, the use is for a good reason. Given the amount of time children spend online, parents should keep a check on the websites their children visit, the people they contact and their whereabouts; whether they attend school regularly or spend their time elsewhere. Spouses also have the right to know to if their partner is cheating on them.

Answering the question posed in the title – useful or intrusion of privacy, it’s a matter of how you use the phone spyware application! For sure though it is important to note that phone spyware available online is illegal in most countries without the consent of the user (or a warrant).

So whilst parents could potentially put the spyware on their children’s telephones to protect them, if a husband puts it on his wife’s phone without her knowledge this is an illegal invasion of privacy.

Indonesia Private Investigation Agency (IPIA) and our sister agency Bali Eye Private Investigation Agency (BEPIA) are fully registered agencies offering investigation services to the private and business sectors throughout Indonesia and South East Asia.

Letters from a Private Investigator VIII

Copyright Fraud

Protecting trade secrets and intellectual property has actually become extremely difficult in the modern international business world.

If you do have a concern that involves proprietary information or about copyright fraud, then Indonesia Private Investigation Agency (IPIA) can help you in discovering how and where any essential information has been compromised.

IPIA can help locate the principal source of illegal activities, the supply chain details and also help contain the situation. IPIA works with business, individuals, and companies in order to protect all their valuable intellectual assets. IPIA private investigators have worked on cases concerning counterfeit products, copyright fraud, and intellectual assets theft.

How Indonesia Private Investigation Agency Can Help

• Discover the production  source of the copyright items;
• Find the seller/s of the copyright items;
• Go undercover in order to uncover and expose the various factors of the supply chain;
• Retrieve valuable specimens of the stolen goods;
• Do background checks of the perpetrators.

What Copyright Investigation Involves

• Research for violations: Indonesia Private Investigation Agency agents are qualified private investigatora nd they can help you in identifying intellectual asset theft as well as copyright fraud;
• Identification of the perpetrators: A private investigator team will discover, locate, and also obtain essential background information and profiles of the perpetrators;
• Surveillance at retail and manufacturing locations: A private investigator may also use surveillance in order to get evidence of infringement and theft;
• Utilization of undercover operatives if needed.

Indonesia Private Investigation Agency has highly qualified private investigators. Unfortunately IPIA is getting more and more calls from clients that had opted for less qualified agencies (and therefore cheaper) only to come to IPIA to do the work all over again (properly).

Whoever you choose  IPIA recommends a Private Investigation Agency that is a reputable and registered company that can offer you the best possible investigation services.  Agencies should have proof of registration and qualifications. Clients are also within their rights to ask for references.

Companies and individuals face challenging,and  constantly evolving intellectual property rights landscape in Indonesia. They still battle constant infringement of patents, copyrights, trademarks, and even trade secrets.

In addition to this, companies face not just administrative hurdles, uneven enforcement, and procedural barriers but also commercial obstacles from extremely sophisticated counterfeiters. Thus, the services of IPIA are in demand now more than ever. So, if you ever need to deal with copyright fraud please contact IPIA for a free consultation on how we can help.

Letters from a Private Investigator VI

Emotional Infidelity

“Do you love her?”

“No, it was just sex.”

We have all heard this kind of dialogue between a man and woman lots of times on the TV and in movies. It is an exchange when one of them has been caught cheating (usually the man).

I would not claim that TV and the movies are real life, but for sure there is a reflection of a culture, sensibilities and human feelings in any form of art (Hollywood and HBO included).

“Do you love her?” reflects an appeal on the person cheated that all could not be lost so long as there is not an emotional connection between her man and the “mistress”. “It was just sex” is an escape of sorts – OK I have done something terribly wrong but I did not break trust in the most important aspect of the relationship, the emotional bond.

Both phrases (“Do you love her? and “It was just sex”) revolve around an assurance that there was no emotional investment in the affair. Both state in their own way that betrayal through the physical is somehow less important than betraying an emotional bond.

Indonesia Private Investigation Agency has dealt with 100s of infidelity and cheating partner cases. This is a very sensitive area and as anyone will appreciate our clients are very emotionally charged and vulnerable. Indeed often we spend much time with our clients in a role similar to that of a counselor. From these hours and hours of talking I could not over emphasise just how heavy an infidelity that has an emotional aspect weighs. Many clients seem to find it far easier to deal with an affair that is only physically based. Of course they are angry and hurt, but if there seems a chance that an affair has an emotional foundation the hurt seems more complex and runs deeper.

What is Emotional Infidelity?

Recently cheating has been reclassified to include not only the physical aspects but also the emotional.

Emotional infidelity can be described as an extramarital affair or extra partnership affair that does not include sexual behaviour. Some experts believe that emotional infidelity can be more damaging than physical infidelity. In emotional infidelity, one member of a couple becomes deeply emotionally invested in a person other than the spouse. The spouse having this type of affair may spend time thinking of that person, anticipating meetings with him/her, and gradually becoming more intimate (platonically) with the person. At the same time, intimacy within the primary relationship suffers, and the nonsexual and even sexual attention paid to a spouse lessens dramatically.

David Moultrup in his book “Husbands, Wives & Lovers: The Emotional System of the Extramarital Affair” defines emotional infidelity as “a relationship between a person and someone other than (their) spouse (or lover) that has an impact on the level of intimacy, emotional distance and overall dynamic balance in the marriage. The role of an affair is to create emotional distance in the marriage.”

We only have a limited amount of emotional energy. The more emotional energy devoted outside the primary relationship, results of course in less being invested within the primary relationship.

Emotional infidelity may take on different forms. Maybe intimate conversations with the someone of the opposite sex or someone that one is attracted to.  Emotional infidelity may also take place online via social media, chat rooms, on hand phones through texting, and by time spent with someone in secret and building a “friendship” and eventual emotional connection.

There are at least 12 warning signs to alert you to take action to protect yourself and your relationship from ‘emotional infidelity.’

1. “We’re just friends”

If you think “we’re just friends,” about someone of the opposite sex you may be on dangerous ground.

This reasoning allows someone to make excuses, (or in some cases to tell lies – to yourself and others) about something you know deep down is wrong.  In most cases an intimate friendship with a member of the opposite-sex poses risks.

2. Sharing intimate thoughts and feelings. 

Sharing your thoughts and deepest concerns, hopes and fears, passions and problems is what deepens intimacy and an emotional bond between two people. If things go this far, this could be a betrayal of trust.

3. Discussing your relationship and partner. 

Telling someone of the opposite sex about your marriage or partner sends a very clear message that you’re available for someone else to ‘love and care’ for. This can also be a breach of trust. It is similar to gossip in that it creates a false sense of a shared connection, and an illusion that you as a person, along with your happiness and comfort and needs are totally valued by this new person (when, in truth, this has not yet been put to the test!). 

4. Comparing the ‘friend’ to your partner. 

Another sign to be aware of is a thinking pattern that finds what is ‘good’ about the friend and ‘bad’ and ‘unfulfilling’ about the partner. This can lead to building a kind of ‘for’ (the friend) and ‘against’ (your partner) case.  This is another mental breach of trust. 

5. Always thinking or daydreaming about the person.

If you find yourself unable to wait to see this person and share news, and think in advance about what you’re going to tell them when you meet, and imagine how they may react, you’re in trouble. Feelings of expectation, excitement and anticipation release dopamine in your brain, which in turn can reinforce patterns of negative thoughts against your primary partner.

6. Believing this person understands you like no other.

This kind of feeling usually appears in affairs and romantic encounters during the early months. With time these feelings tend to fade. In the context of an emotional affair believing someone understand you like no other can be dangerous to a marriage. A sense of mutual ‘understanding’ forms a bond that strengthens and deepens emotional intimacy. This in turn releases pleasurable neurochemicals, such as the love and safety hormone oxytocin. This focus also puts you in a ‘getting’ state of mind, approaching your marriage in terms of what you’re getting or not getting, rather than what you’re contributing.

7. Pulling out of regular activities with your partner, family, and work.

When you want to spend more and more time talking, sharing, and being with the person, it’s only natural to begin to resent time you spend at home and work. Consequently you start distancing yourself from your usual connections or make excuses for not joining regular activities with your primary partner. You can become withdrawn, irritable and unhappy.

8. Keeping what you do secret.

Secrecy is a huge warning sign. Secrecy creates a distinct and exciting closeness and unique bond between two people. But the bond can be unhealthy – there may be a false sense of emotional trust with the person, and an unwarranted mistrust and suspicion of the partner, or those who try to interfere with the ‘friendship.’

9. Keeping a growing list of reasons that justify your behaviours. 

This is an addictive pattern of thinking that focuses your attention on how unhappy you are, and blames your primary partner for any unhappiness. This pattern of thinking can create a sense of entitlement and forms a pool of resentment from which you feel justified to mistreat your partner or do what you need to do to increase your happiness.

10. Fantasizing about a love or sexual relationship with the person. 

At some point, one or both persons begin to fantasize about the relationship becoming physical. They even may begin to have discussions about this, adding to the excitement, intensity and intrigue.

11. Giving or receiving personal gifts from the person.

Another warning sign is when you begin to think about this person when you are shopping, wondering what they like or would show your appreciation. Gift choices are often something intimate that you would not normally give ‘just’ a friend. Gifts send clear messages that the two of you are a ‘close we’ set apart from others, and that the relationship is ‘special.’

12. Planning to spend time alone together or letting it happen.

This behaviour often pushes people to cross the line from a platonic to a sexual relationship.

 Letters from a Private Investigator V

A few weeks ago we had a call one Sunday afternoon. The client was in Japan and asked if we could get to the airport in Jakarta to observe an arrival and follow him to his next destination.

The client had flight details and could send pictures. The flight was due in just a few hours.

At this point we had only limited details as to why the client wanted this particular target followed. The client just said he needed help in recovering some stolen property.

Airport Surveillance

Surveillance and hooking arriving targets at airports can be a challenge and needs more resources than usual surveillance. Indonesia Private Investigation Agency will generally use two agents on regular surveillance, but at an airport it needs some detailed planning and preparation with at least three private investigators (depending on the airport).

People leave airports by three methods generally:

• Taxi
• Public transport
• Pick up

Basically at airports the private investigation team will need to consists of:

• Two agents around the arrival gate to identify the target upon arrival;
• An agent at each possible exit;
• Backup support agents along the exit roads.

When a target is identified at an airport the aim of the agents at the arrival gate is to get a positive identification and follow the target until they either get into the public transport system, or the target gets into another vehicle (such as a taxi).

If the target does get into public transport then the agents that hooked them at the arrival gate should keep with them in the transport system. Normally Indonesia Private Investigation Agency prefers to use a man and a woman as the two agents carrying out surveillance at the arrival gate (one has a little luggage). We do this in case surveillance is needed into a public transport system – a man and woman blend inconspicuously on an airport train or bus especially if one has luggage with a flight tag on it.

If the target gets into a taxi or other vehicle (as in the case if they are picked up by someone) the first set of agents need to identify the vehicle details and try to establish which exit they appear to be moving towards.

As soon as they have these details the agent needs to radio the agent at the identified exit points with the details and the support agents.

Target Tracked

Jakarta airport is not overly complicated as far as airports go and our two agents at arrivals were able to identify the target. As the target joined the taxi queue we were also able to get a picture over to the client to confirm we had the right person.

The taxi details were then radioed to IPIA’s third and fourth agents at the exit point and on the road.

These two agents were able to follow the target onto his destination – a hotel.  IPIA has standard procedures for following on a road (we do this for foot surveillance also). The aim (where possible) is for the two agents to switch positions every five or ten minutes. So agent A follows the target and agent B follows agent A. Then they keep switching.

Spooking the Thief

Now we knew the hotel the target was in and had pictures, we has a conference call with client.

The client explained that the target had stolen over $1 million from his company.

For the next step the client wanted one of IPIA’s private investigators to get a letter to the target and then for us to watch. The letter was from the client’s lawyer. He wanted this done immediately before the target slept (within two hours of the target arriving – and keep in mind the target had already flown about 16 hours).

So our agent would not be seen we had someone put the letter under the target’s door when we knew they were inside. IPIA’s private investigators waited in the hotel lobby and outside with a motorbike at the ready.

Within thirty minutes of delivering the letter the target arrived in the lobby with his bags and checked out. He then went back to the airport.

Nothing much happened at the airport. The target was on his phone a lot and went to a few sales counters. Then after a couple of hours he got a taxi.

The Thief Disappears in the Night

It does not matter how well you do your job or how many agents you have, there is always the chance that you will lose a target. There are many reasons, but the trick is to have a back up plan.

The target was lost in the horrendous Jakarta evening traffic.

Good connections with different people is essential for a private investigator. Having worked on over 400 cases Indonesia Private Investigation Agency has developed a range of relationships with organizations such as police, immigration, child protection services, hotels and ………taxi companies.

For a small fee we can give the taxi company the taxi number of the taxi the target was in. They were able to contact the driver for us and find where he dropped our target.

The Second Catch

The thief (or alleged thief) had checked into a very expensive hotel on the outskirts of Jakarta. Our job now was only to observe and follow and, if he left, which we guessed he would, find his next destination.

People tend to think surveillance is exciting. There are times when it gives you a real buzz but often it is boring and very hard work.

Surveillance work is not all about the target being active.For a Private Investigator surveillance is generally 90% inactivity and 10% activity.  So, for every ten hours of surveillance, you will spend 9 hours doing nothing but watching and waiting. Watching what? Nothing much – a door, a car, a hotel lobby.

At least for this case we were indoors in a comfortable and very nice hotel. We could sit in the lobby cafe and see all exit points and the hotel desk.

The Thief Makes a Move

The next day, after staying in his room all night, the target appeared at the check out counter. As we predicted he made his way to the airport.

The client wanted to us to find out where he was going next, and asked us to follow him through to the check in point to see which flight he was taking.

There are two problems with this.

The first problem is the fact that in Indonesia to get access into the check in area you need a valid flight ticket. It is not an open complex. With our contacts this is quite an easy obstacle to overcome.

The second problem however is more difficult to solve whatever airport you are in . Even seeing the counter a target checks in at will not necessarily tell you where someone is going. If for example I fly from the UK to Indonesia my first flight could be from London to Amsterdam or to Dubai, so I check in at these counters and then from Amsterdam or Dubai I go through transit.

Again knowing the right people can make all the difference for a Private Investigation Agency – we were able to get the target’s complete flight itinerary. The target was flying to Singapore (so in Jakarta he would have checked in at the Singapore check in counter) and then onto a Japan airline flight to Japan.

Conclusion

The target left and the client had time to make any arrangements needed in Japan. We reckon the client played a clever move with the letter. The letter, delivered when the target was probably exhausted and frightened but thinking he had escaped, showed him that the client knew where he was and had him tracked. The letter gave the target an escape route – come back now and the consequences will be minimal compared to what they will be if you try and run (and if you do run we will catch you).

The target did meet with our client in Japan. We are not sure what happened to him but we do know the client got the $1 million back (probably minus a few flight costs and the luxurious hotel costs in Jakarta).

Disclaimer: this case history is true. However, we have changed a few details such as flight destinations for reasons of confidentiality. IPIA would also stress that whilst the target in this article is often described as “the thief” this is done purely for as a convenience for retelling this case. The target had not been convicted of the alleged crime when IPIA carried out this case.

Letters from a Private Investigator II

Private Investigators Catch an Embezzler

This is a true private investigation case IPIA and BEPIA solved recently tracking and catching an embezzler. We have changed the names, places and dates to protect confidentiality.

Modern technologies are incredibly useful for a private investigator in Indonesia but at the end of the day it is the old fashioned leg work, patience and perseverance and the thrilling chase that closes a case.

Modern Technologies and Old Fashioned Leg Work in Private Investigation Work in Indonesia

Background

In early February our private investigator agency had a call from someone in Jakarta. We will call him Fred. Fred was extremely worried for his wife, Jane, as she was likely to go to prison although she seemed innocent and a victim of a set up.

Jane worked in the finance department in a large company in Jakarta.

In the same company there was another senior financial officer, Steve, working as a freelance auditor.

From 2010 Steve started to ask money from Jane. The reasons he gave were all related to the company’s tax payments. Jane, being young and naive, believed her senior partner after assurances that it would be fine to skip the usual financial controlling systems.

In late 2012 the company’s Director checked their tax status and found taxes had not been paid since 2010. The amount had accumulated to around 5 billion IDR ($500,000).

Jane was asked for her explanation and showed all the transfer scripts she had from Steve.

The Target

Fred had called Indonesia Private Investigation Agency (IPIA) to have our private investigators track and find Steve, the embezzler, who had disappeared.

We asked Fred to give us three weeks to complete the case.

Our Private Investigators Track the Embezzler 

Our private investigator’s first task was to find out the target’s location. All we really had to go on was a telephone number, and a date of birth (because Steve was freelance, or perhaps there were other reasons the company did not want to co-operate).

Officially SIM cards in Indonesia must be registered with a valid ID, or for foreigners a passport. This system was introduced as a security measure especially in light of terrorist threats.

In reality though in Indonesia, as any private investigator can tell you, you can buy a SIM card from any small shop and they will activate the card for you using their own details. So a track on a registered user will not always get you a target’s details.

Our luck was in. It turned out Steve had registered “correctly” (not a very smart embezzler mind) and he was registered as having an address in Bandung (about three hours from Jakarta).

Our private investigator team made their way to the house. However it was his ex-wife’s house and they don’t have any contact with Steve anymore (or so they said).

We did though learn that Steve had a mother who was sick and his ex-wife gave us the address (so we guess she was not lying when she said she had had no contact with Steve).

We got to Steve’s address and for four days we waited. He just did not show.

The Trace and Chase

If a telephone number is active and switched on our private investigators can track the location within a 200 meter radius.

We had been trying for a few days but the phone was always off.

Then Steve appeared on our radar system, blinking away in Bali.

The chase was on, but like any good hunter knows a great deal of patience is needed.

Within three hours we had the Director of Investigations travel from Jakarta to Bali to meet up with our sister agency Bali Eye Private Investigation Agency (BEPIA).

You can imagine how many houses there are in a built up area of a 200-meter radius. So with both IPIA and BEPIA working together we canvassed the area for three days. He was still blinking away on our radar but we could not find him.

Then out of the blue a trace shows him back in Jakarta.

Any fisherman knows the feeling when you are close to a catch but the fish gets away. That feeling is the same for a private investigator. But still almost two weeks had passed by and despite the loss we were still confident of catching the embezzler.

Perseverance and perseverance. And as every private investigator knows that brings its own luck. So off we went back to Jakarta and started the canvassing there.

Not again? Yes two days later Steve appeared back in Bali.

But our private investigators had not just been running around like a headless chicken following telephone  tracks. We had other private investigators doing more background research and with help from some financial consultants we finally got a solid lead: Steve has a wife in Bali and we now knew his address there.

The Hook Is In

I called in to the BEPIA and got them at the address immediately. Our private investigators had a picture and description and they were on standby surveillance whilst I came back to Bali.

After two days we saw him and got a nice crisp photo that we sent to our client Fred for confirmation. We also confirmed his means of transportation (cars and motorbikes etc.) and stayed still waiting.

Our client Fred took the next flight to Bali. I met him (of course one team was with the embezzler the whole time) and we sat for a while in an airport cafe to discuss the next steps.

As we sat there a BEPIA private investigator called me and said Steve and his wife were on the move. Fred and I went straight to their house and saw their car on the road.

I followed them with two car covers between my car and theirs. This close finally after all this time the heart beats. This is when the chase really makes me love my job. The thrill is in the chasing and not the apprehension, the pursuit you see and never the arrest. Not that the capture does not give me a great buzz and sense of satisfaction, but the nervousness comes with the chase.

Steve and his wife were moving towards the airport. This suspicion was strengthened by my BEPIA colleague telling me they had two small bags with them (not shopping bags).

The Net Closes

I never let Fred know but at this stage I was a little bit panicked.

I was weighing up what I needed to do when they arrived at the airport. I knew I had to ask police to help at this stage.

IPIA/BEPIA private investigators have a close relationship with the police and I had already had dinner with one contact a few days before to brief them just in case help was needed. I called my contact and asked if he could meet us at the airport.

As Steve pulled near the departure parking I pulled my car next to his.

My police contacts were there to meet us and we landed the target.

I actually thought I might get a round of applause from the whole airport, but no-one of course knew what was happening or what me and my private investigator team had been through. It was all done very quietly and the big embezzler was like a shuttling little timid mouse in a corner, and off he was taken to the airport’s police station.

A few hours later the police had the proof they needed as Steve confessed looking tired and scared (if he had lawyered up he probably would have been able to walk free).

Fred did not want to take him to court (and what the company finally did with Steve he was not that concerned with). All he wanted was protection for his wife and a written statement from Steve admitting what he had taken and was using the company’s money for his own sake.

Indonesia Private Investigation Agency (IPIA) and our sister agency  Bali Eye Private Investigation Agency (BEPIA) are fully registered Private Investigation Agencies offering private detective and private investigator services to the Private and Business sectors throughout Indonesia and South East Asia.