"Hook-ups" can cost you more than you might think

Since today is Valentine's Day, those of us at R & R thought we would remind all of you out there to be careful with who you "hook-up" with. This posting is not meant to cast judgment on someones morality, but instead it is to warn of the, now common, dangers that many of you may not have thought of.

Two years ago to the day, one of our clients met someone that he'd never seen before at a local watering hole in the city of Angels. After some short conversation the stars seem to align and our client thought he saw fireworks. Overcome with emotion, they decided to build on their new relationship and continue the conversation in her car out in the parking lot. Unfortunately, our client didn't know she was married, nor did he realize that she had a strong aversion to telling the truth. After securing their friendship, they parted ways. Each went to their respective homes. Our client went home to his waiting dog, and the woman went home to her waiting husband and kids.

This may not seem like a big deal, but hear is where it gets complicated. When she got home, she stumbled into her bedroom, where her husband had been waiting for his wayward wife. He turned on the lights to asked her a series of twenty questions. To his surprise, he saw his wife standing at the foot of their bed, make-up smeared, shirt miss-buttoned (and missing underwear). In shock, he asked her what happened, pointing to her obvious state of disarray. Fearing that her recent "hook-up" might be discovered, she told her husband she had been assaulted.

I'm sure you can imagine what happened next. Police, family and friends were called, and all gathered around the woman to offer their support. Shortly afterwards, our client found himself sitting in jail, bruised and confused.

Fortunately for our client, we were able to locate video from the bar. The videos, along with witness interviews and cell phone records, seemed to encourage the woman to tell the truth. But, it took almost one year for the case to work out, and that's one year of our client's life that he'll never get back. And keep in mind, that year doesn't include the effects that the news articles and blogs have have on our client's life.

The morale of the story is: If it (she / he) looks to good to be true, then make sure they're not married.

Workplace Investigations

R & R investigative Solutions can help your workplace run problem-free. An undercover investigation is critical for thoroughly and effectively resolving difficult-to-investigate situations such as theft, substance abuse, or other forms of serious employee misconduct.

• Why: Undercover workplace investigations are employee-interactive. This method develops first-hand evidence and information concerning suspected employees. If necessary, our operatives can testify in court.
• When: Your situation may merit an undercover investigation when your company suspects that a potential or serious problem exists within the workforce. An undercover operative has the best chance of confirming or disproving rumors, and exposing the guilty parties.
• Who: Within the company, only top level management, directors of security or human resources personnel should have any knowledge of the use of undercover operatives or of the investigative findings.
• Where: The undercover investigator should be placed in a position that allows mobility and access to suspected employees. Multiple investigators may be required to investigate various shifts and departments.
• What: A multi-faceted effort. We maintain daily, two-way communication with our operatives to continually share and assess new information and to strategize our efforts. The undercover operative will detail all his/her findings in a daily report submitted after each shift worked. Close supervision contributes to the successful outcome of the assignment.

Our operatives gather pertinent evidence of gross policy violations by engaging in hand-to-hand buys of stolen company property, illicit drugs, or trade secrets. When appropriate, the undercover workplace investigation is augmented by the proper and lawful use of covert surveillance, sting operations, and when necessary, with assistance from local law enforcement.

Undercover work can be a vital research component in cases ranging from fraud and embezzlement to workers comp fraud.We have enabled employers to improve their bottom line by substantially reducing losses associated with theft, poor performance, time falsification, substance abuse, product tampering, equipment sabotage and other forms of dishonesty and criminal activity. Some clients have found it unnecessary to replace the offending employees, thereby improving morale and increasing profits. Our unique, systematic approach has allowed our clients to enforce company polices without fear of reprisal or potential litigation. R & R investigative Solutions uses a proven and effective process for all workplace investigations.

Investigative Strategy:
• Tactical Planning
• Evidence and Information Gathering
• Interviews and Corroboration of Intelligence
• Submission of Final Report for Corrective Action
• Screening, Training and Prevention

We have experience in successfully investigating misconduct and criminal activity for employers in practically every industry, including aerospace, automotive, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, electronics, computer technology, newspaper, transportation, agriculture, steel products, forestry products, food manufacturing/processing, law firms, municipalities, non-profit assisted living organizations and all facets of manufacturing and warehouse distribution.

Addressing all the issues in a thoroughly comprehensive and ethical manner, and using all the tactics available, is your best guarantee of success.

New Efforts

I had to think long and hard about this post. No education with this one. Lately, I have had time on my hands and have been thinking about giving back. Have you seen the Runaway Squad on A&E? A group of investigators got together some time ago and have taken on runaway cases for free. They pull together a lot of skilled investigators.

For the past few months I have done some mild research about how I can contribute to the cause. Maybe get some counselors/professionals from different walks of life to create a network of support for Runaways or drug addicted teens. I am thinking of drug addiction counselors,child abuse counselors, and so forth.

Any ideas out there? This would be something I would really appreciate feedback on. Hopefully this can get off and running over the next several months or so.

Horsepower:Getting contact information from interviews

Horsepower. This is not about cars. It's about getting all the information from a witness. This goes out to the Cops and PI's out there. Ever wonder why you are asked to get all of a person's horsepower, or identifying information?

For cops, it's seems to be so you or the next person can easily find someone. That, and to make sure you know who your talking to.

For PI's, it's for the same reasons, and you never know if the alibi witness you need at court has warrants or a criminal history a mile long. Witnesses do get arrested by the bailiff from time to time.

When interviewing someone, getting their name, DOB, phone numbers, and addresses are all musts. When interviewing, I try to get email addresses, Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, and any other information I can use to learn more about them. Get everything you can on the person while they are in front of you, because you never know if that is the last time you'll see them.

Investigations 101: Photographs

"A picture is worth a 1,000 words." Whoever said that was pretty accurate. That is if we could think of a 1,000 words.

What would we do without pictures in trail? These days, not everyone's believable. Photographs are real convincing...So are audio and video.

Let's say Mr. Defendant, your salt of the Earth kind of guy, says he never conducted that "Hand-to-Hand." However, he doesn't know that Mr. Officer had his cell phone camera and snapped the picture. Furthermore, Mr. Officer gets photos of drugs on buyer and seller. Luck? No, there is no luck! It's nothing more than preparation meeting opportunity.

Hitting on cell phones again: I found that when looking into fights or assaults that happened at house parties or other gatherings, asking to look at peoples cell phones is real helpful. You might even catch it on Youtube. Crowds love watching fights. UFC, HBO Boxing, High School...

Everyone in the investigation field knows that photography makes and breaks cases all the time. If you're thinking of getting into this field, pick up some books on the trade. Most colleges offer photography classes; some even offer crime scene photography classes.

If you have any questions, or tips for us readers post comments.

Saying hi for the first time....

Interesting, the blog. I hope you the readers enjoy growing with me. The Investigative Solutions Blogspot will definitely be an eyebrow raiser. If this becomes boring or lame, it's my hope you will let me know.

Challenge the postings. Let's really make this worth while. Discussion and arguments will make things more enjoyable. THIS BLOG IS NOT ABOUT SALES, however I do love my company. It is great working for yourself. Although, there are downsides. That is for a later, more depressing post.

Now, a little about me, Rick Cornejo. I own half of R&R Investigative Solutions. The other half is owned by Rick Barnes. We operate under Mr. Barnes' PILicense25564.

What does our firm do? Covert Surveillance, interview witnesses, fraud prevention, and of course the big one...Private Investigations.

Offices are currently in Victorville and Redlands, California. We draw clients from the Inland Empire and surrounding areas, but have had folks request our services in other parts of the country.

Thanks for following and supporting this endeavor. I am really excited to see where this takes us.