It may seem strange to start this private investigator surveillance post with a negative. However, to maintain a good relationship, it is essential that the client is aware of the drawbacks from the onset.
We cannot emphasize enough that how, on multiple occasions, the desired outcome for a client can often be achieved without surveillance.
In short, surveillance is not something to be undertaken lightly.
Contact us now for more information3-day TAT
On this occasion, our client was a British lady. She and her husband lived in UK but made frequent visits to Hong Kong. The woman believed her husband was having an affair with a female colleague at his company in Kowloon Bay.
Preparatory Surveillance:
Surveillance:
That evening, we informed the client that the ‘other’ woman was, indeed, not at the lunch.
On the second day, the husband followed a similar pattern. Nothing suspicious was seen and there was no sign of ‘other’ woman.
On the evening of the third day, and after another 10 hours on duty, we received a frantic call from the client. She had found out through her own sources that the ‘other’ woman was in Indonesia on holiday.
Failure in this instance was beyond our control!
And now for a successful case study when a relatively short period of surveillance yielded dream results for the end client.
1-week TAT
The client was a European private investigator, working on a case for an international investment company. Briefly, there was reason to suspect that a senior manager based in Hong Kong, was about to jump ship with most of his colleagues.
There was no sign of the manager at his home address on Hong Kong Island. However, it was clear that someone was occupying the apartment. The bank was concerned and wanted to know more. The client asked us to find out where the manager was actually living.
In addition, they asked us to carry out research to see if we could find any assets and also better understand his personal relationships with colleagues.
PRESTIGIOUS ADDRESS: The residential address was a very high-end block on Hong Kong Island. The surveillance team went to the address and parked nearby.
The surveillance team watched for the bank manager the entire day but did not see him.
IDENTIFICATION OF TWO CARS: However, one of the operatives talked his way into the complex on a pretext and found his way into the parking area, below ground. The apartment had two allocated parking spaces. A Mercedes occupied one and the other was empty, but there was a registration number painted on the ground. The operative phoned the two numbers through to our project manager’s office.
Later on that day, researchers discovered that the owner of the parked Mercedes was the manager’s son and the registration number painted on the floor belonged to another Mercedes, but in the manager’s name.
DISCOVERY OF SECOND ADDRESS AND BVI COMPANY: The address to which the manager’s car was registered turned out to be another high-end address. When checked, a BVI company owned the address. In the apartment purchase documents, we found that both the manager and his wife were directors of the BVI company.
NEW SURVEILLANCE LOCATION: We immediately informed the client and suggested that we moved surveillance to the new address for the remaining days.
SUBJECT IDENTIFIED: Sure enough, early the following morning, the operatives filmed the bank manager leaving the new address in the Mercedes with the registration number recovered from the garage floor.
Social media also helped identify colleagues with whom he lunched.
Within 24 hours of starting, we had:
The client was ecstatic with our findings and was able to cut surveillance by two days as soon as he confirmed the details to the European investment company.
Ideally, before surveillance even begins, the surveillance team needs to know or possess:
Also, we like to agree with the client on what to do in certain circumstances, such as if the Subject enters a paying nightclub… Do we follow or not? The Subject goes for a meal in a top-end restaurant with a group of associates… Do we enter or not? And what if he heads off to Macau? Follow or not?
Before the surveillance starts, it is essential for the team to make a site visit to the main places the Subject is likely to visit. Also, is there likely to be a need for a female operative?
Experience tells us that a properly researched surveillance project will, without doubt, produce better results.
In a BBC video, we get a glimpse of what China calls “the world’s biggest camera surveillance network”. In 2017, there were already across the country, 170 million CCTV cameras in place. It was estimated that in 2021 there would be another 400 million.
Many of the cameras are fitted with artificial intelligence, including facial recognition technology.
Veriton Investigations was co-founded in 2014 by an ex-Hong Kong police officer and a research/ communications professional. They recognized a need in the private investigator industry to combine high quality reporting and analysis with discreet, feet-on-the-ground investigations and surveillance.
Veriton Investigations is a brand of the Veriton Asia Group. We offer a comprehensive portfolio of research and investigations services from full reputational due diligence and surveillance to China company checks, executive screening and process serves.
Get the Veriton newsletter for updates and special offers available ONLY to our subscribers.
Get the Veriton newsletter for updates and special offers available ONLY to our subscribers.
Established in 2014 as part of the Veriton Asia Group, Veriton Investigations provides international clients with professional investigative and research services in Hong Kong, Macau, China and other parts of SE Asia.
Confidentiality and discretion are guaranteed.
Established in 2014 as part of the Veriton Asia Group, Veriton Investigations provides international clients with professional investigative and research services in Hong Kong, Macau, China and other parts of SE Asia.
Confidentiality and discretion are guaranteed.
Avoid losing time and money with your next research or investigations project!
Why not sign up for our occasional newsletter to get your free eBook? Contains useful advice with guidelines to help you get ready for an investigation.
