by plittle@westcoastdetectives.us | Jun 28, 2022 | Blog
PHIL CASE STUDY WCDI
The case of the missing children.
One morning as I was in my office when Terri, the receptionist, came over the intercom informing me that there was a woman who walked in and would like to speak with a detective. She asked me if I wanted to talk with her or if she should let one of the managers handle her? I have always had a policy that I will speak with new clients if I am available.
There was a light knock on my office door as Terri walked in with a very elegantly dressed woman. I was struck by her appearance and her strong French accent. For this story, we will call her Monique.
Monique was a little nervous as she shared with me that she had been driving by our office for weeks and thinking about stopping by, and finally, today, she made the decision even though she was unsure if we could help her. I asked her to tell me her story, and I would let her know how we could help. She started by saying she was from France and had been in the states for over 25 years, although her accent sounded like she had arrived days ago.
She took a deep breath and shared that in her early twenties, she married an older man who was a high-ranking general in the French army, and they had two children together, a boy and a girl. When the children were about four and five, she had some indiscretions. She didn’t elaborate on the details, but they were severe enough that she was given an ultimatum – leave the country without the children or face serious consequences in France.
Shortly after being given the ultimatum, she arrived in the United States, and up to this day, she has not been back to France or seen her children. It was easy to see that this had broken her heart, that she was in agony and pain of having to be separated from her children. She had learned that her ex-husband, the General, had died, and she wanted to see her children.
This brought her into my office; she had no idea how to find them and needed help. With tears in her eyes, she softly asked if there was any way I could help her. As I looked at her and reached across and took her hand, I said yes, there is, and we will find your children for you. She looked at me with amazement and said how can you be so sure, I smiled and said we are detectives, and I have assets in Paris. Please give me all the details on the General and your children.
She was prepared as she handed me some papers and photos of the General with his full name, date of birth, and address where they had lived when she left the country. She also had pictures of the children when she left with their full names and dates of birth with their French ID numbers.
I believe we all have that soft spot in our hearts to help people, and I do. And this is the type of case that hits that soft spot in me, and I love to work on pro-bono—reuniting a mother and her children after more than two decades apart.
I do not believe that it was a coincidence the timing that Monique walked into my office. Over the past few years, I built our intelligence network across Europe and developed relationships at the French National Police HDQ. Using this resource, I would reach out to them with the data to conduct the primary research for me. I informed Monique it might be a few weeks before we started to get information back, but I would keep her informed as we progressed.
The following day I prepared the case instructions with all the data on the subject along with the photos and faxed them; (this was pre-Internet and email) to my friend Jean at the police headquarters.
I was pleasantly surprised to hear from Jean in three days to inform me that they found them, the now-adult children of the client. As it turns out, the General was a well-known man, as were the children. Both kids, who were now in their late twenties and early thirties, worked for the French Government.
Jean told me we have all their information phones, address, and work location, and he asked me what the next step was. I told him to standby while I talked to the client about what she wanted to do.
I will never forget that conversation, even though it was several years ago, as I told her we had found them. She started weeping with joy. She could not believe that we had found them and so quickly.
I shared with her that both children worked for the French Government and were single. I asked her what she wanted us to do now. She expressed the usual fear that they would not want to talk to her after all this time. I told her that from my experience in cases like this, children are usually very receptive to reuniting.
I explained that if she wanted, we could talk to them and arrange a time for a call, and we could do it at my office with our communication system. She agreed.
I reached out to Jean and updated him, and he made contact with the kids and explained the situation. A few days later, I received the call from Jean, and he said both of the children were eager to talk to their mother and had set a morning time in Los Angeles for the call.
I called our client and the tears started again, and a lot of French praising. She couldn’t wait for the call.
That Saturday morning when the call came in was a one-hour call I will never forget. Twenty-five years disappeared in a flash. It turned out the children had known as they got older that she had not abandoned them. That hour was spent in joyful tears as they talked over each other to find out what they had missed for the past twenty-five years. At the end of the conversation, it was agreed the children would come to L.A. to see her in a few weeks and then arrange for her to go to France.
After hanging up the phone, Monique walked over to me and hugged me so tight that her tears ran down my shoulder. She expresses her heartfelt thanks in broken English and French.
The icing on the cake was when the children came to visit her; she brought them by to meet me. It was a perfect ending to this case.
This is why I love being an investigator.
Monique and I stayed in contact over the years, and whenever she needed some help, she would give me a call.
Another satisfied client.
Until Next time: Stay Safe
by plittle@westcoastdetectives.us | May 23, 2022 | Blog
A change of unform from the Sheriff’s Department
West Coast Detectives International is now one hundred years old. Founded in 1922, and within those one hundred years, a lot has happened to WCDI and the world. King Solomon said, “So there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one might say, “See this, it is new”? It has already existed for ages which were before us.” And while change does happen all around us, some things never change, such as a client needing investigative help 100 years ago, 50 years ago, or today. The needs are the same. Helping people has been the number one focus for WCDI these past one hundred years and will always be our number one focus.
I cannot remember how many times I have been asked about the types of cases that I have worked on. How exciting it must be to be a P.I. Well, I can say that after 200,000 or so cases in our history, we have had some interesting, exciting, crazy, and heart-breaking cases.
After a recent conversation, it was mentioned that I should share case stories, some of our history, from some of our more interesting case files. Why not, I thought, it would be fun to go through our archives and share cases and some of the “old-school” investigative techniques used before the Internet.
Here we go.
Case 1: Murder for Millions
Los Angeles, California
A call came in from Dallas, Texas. The President of an insurance company informed me that a man, a policyholder with a multimillion-dollar payout, was found dead in our area, Ventura County. He asked if I could meet with him at their headquarters in Dallas and retain our services.
Within 48-hours, I was in a meeting gathering all the facts and victim information. A few hours later, I was on a flight back to L.A. with a briefcase full of documents and a retainer check.
I contacted the local Sheriffs office and spoke with the two detectives assigned to the case. I informed them on what background information I currently had on the victim and that I was headed to Washington State to gather more information and build a profile. We shared our contact information and agreed to keep each other updated. I also found out that the victim was shot in the head with what looked to be a 22 slug. The autopsy confirmed that the bullet was not there. Victim Information (Name changed for privacy issues):
The victim, John Jones, was a successful businessman from the Northwest who traveled to Los Angeles regularly. We soon discovered that the life Mr. Jones lived in Washington State was polar opposite of the life he led in L.A.
- Washington: Mr. Jones was married, a family man who was active in his church.
- A.: Mr. Jones had a flashy younger girlfriend and loved the nightlife.
Upon our learning the girlfriend’s name, I sent some of our investigators out to the streets of L.A., asking around and checking out the clubs they frequented. At first, we could not find anyone who knew them or offered any new leads or tips.
You’ve heard the saying, “It’s always darkest before the dawn,” for us, it was dead ends before the big tip or hot lead. By chance, we found a former friend of the girlfriend who was more than willing to provide us with her name and address. She was a eureka moment in the investigation for us.
We notified the sheriff’s detectives and set up twenty-four-hour surveillance on the subject’s residence. Our objective was now to confirm the I.D. of the subject and see where she went and who she was associating with.
While my investigators watched the girlfriend, I met with the detectives in their office. They had discovered similar M.O.’s in other unsolved murder cases. Male victims with large life insurance payouts after the policy had been recently taken out. The detectives believe that it was part of an organized crime operation. The FBI, LAPD, LASO, and the Texas Rangers all had similar open cases that they were investigating. The detectives also informed me that their department did not have the budget to handle a multi-state investigative operation. I asked them if I could use their phone, and I made a call to my client.
After updating the client, they agreed to underwrite the task force’s cost. The cost of the investigation versus the policy payout would save them millions. It was a risk worth them taking.
Within a week, I and agents and officers from the various jurisdictions were sitting in a hotel room in Ventura County reviewing timelines, sharing information, and strategizing as tasks were assigned to each agency. I continued working with the same detectives from Ventura County.
Police officers, especially homicide detectives, regularly see the brutality of humankind. They often develop a thick skin or what some outsiders would call callousness or a dark sense of humor. The two detectives I was working with had developed a close friendship and often joked with each other. I was surprised that it was often light-hearted humor and not the other type. I recall when we all flew to Dallas as part of the investigation, and after arriving at the airport, one of the detectives jumped into a wheelchair as the other pushed him wildly through the airport. It was a wild Code 3 wheelchair response. You couldn’t help but laugh at the two kids; I mean homicide detectives as they ripped through the airport.
After the task force began its investigation, on one occasion I flew into San Antonio, and upon my arrival at the airport, I was discreetly met by some Texas Rangers. They asked me if I had noticed the beautiful blonde woman that was on my flight. Of course, I thought to myself; everyone noticed her. I casually responded that I was aware of her. They informed me that she was working with the “bad guys,” and she was sent to follow me. My thoughts quickly went to my family back in California and their safety. I quickly realized that although I was living and working in the heart of the T.V. and moviemaking industry, this was no T.V. show or movie. This was real life, and I needed to be very careful.
In case you haven’t realized yet, this investigation took place in the 1970s, before the Internet and being able to conduct a background from your office computer. Obtain a person’s I.D. information, current and historical addresses, telephones, court records, financial history, etc. While there are restrictions on what can be accessed today, in the 70s, every investigation was worked by hand or more accurately, by foot. The P.I. world has evolved with the technological developments, but a case of this type still requires fieldwork and boots on the ground.
Our investigators hit the streets, following up on leads as our investigation continued. With the information that we were gathering along with the task force, we connected the dots to the organized crime ring to a string of murders. We identified bodies and victims from Mexico to Panama and across the U.S.
A break in the case came when we identified a prime suspect and the gun we believed was used in our murder and many others. But we still had one essential missing part, a body with the bullet still in it that we could match.
Maybe the big break was here. We received a call about a body in Mexico that had been sent back to the states for burial. Everything about this death matched our investigation, so one of our law enforcement partners quickly obtained a court order to exhume the body. We grew excited with anticipation that we finally would be able to have the evidence to make an arrest and stop these murderers.
When the casket arrived at the coroner’s office, there were representatives from every jurisdiction of the task force, including myself, inside a private room. We all positioned ourselves around the casket as the attendants began opening it. It felt like an eternity. As the lid was raised open, we all gasped as we could not believe our eyes. The body was there, but one part was missing, the part with the bullet, the head. Someone in Mexico had beaten us to the evidence. As disappointed as we were, we were not defeated. We got back to work and on the streets while law enforcement did their part.
As our investigation unfolded, we learned that Mr. Jones had severe money needs. As the story went, his girlfriend set him up with some money people, and they had a business opportunity for him. Part of this opportunity required that a key man’s life insurance policy be opened on him, and he would need to provide some “good faith” up-front money. Mr. Jones would fly into L.A. to meet the money person, give the money, and sign the papers.
Mr. Jones did receive a call from the money person, and a meeting was arranged. The victim would fly into Los Angeles International Airport for the meeting. The victim did have one question for the money person, “how will I recognize you?” Mr. Jones was informed that this wasn’t a problem and knew what he looked like. Unfortunately, this did not raise a warning in Mr. Jones’ mind.
After over three years of investigative casework being open through all the investigative work, we were able to identify the ringleader of the organization. We uncovered the money person who met Mr. Jones and the other victims. We learned that every victim was told the same story about the money-making opportunity and that a life insurance policy was needed to protect them. The ghoulish part was that each victim was paying for their murder. The up-front money was handed directly to the hitman, so there was no connection between the crime ring and the hitman.
Our investigation also found the travel schedule and flight information for the hitman. We confirmed he was on flights into LAX and other cities where the murders occurred.
When Mr. Jones met the money person/hitman, they left in a vehicle together, and the money was given to the hitman. Somewhere along the drive from LAX to Ventura County, Mr. Jones was shot in the back of his head with a .22 slug. And his body was dumped off the side of a hill. The hitman then returned to LAX, bordered a plane, and left the state. He was in Los Angeles for less than 12 hours.
As I previously mentioned, we identified the ringleader, and when he was interviewed on his deathbed, he confessed to his involvement in the murders.
Case closed!
Hollywood has traditionally depicted an adversarial relationship between private investigators and the police. Where law enforcement refuses to work with P.I.’s, while this can happen, at WCDI, we have always had a good relationship with law enforcement. We understand that we can assist and provide services to benefit their work. And in the end, the community benefits as well.
Until next time be safe.
Phil
by plittle@westcoastdetectives.us | May 18, 2022 | Blog
Mikhail Khodarenok Retired Russian Colonel
The following candor by a retired Russian Colonel points out the need for all of us as leaders to not get so isolated that we think the information we want to be right is really right.
We need to remind and educate our clients on the need for broad intelligence input so we can make informed decisions that will not get our businesses in the position that Putin has put Russia in.
Normally Russia’s mainstream media outlets only give views of the Ukraine war that Putin wants out. What we see outside of Russia, in the world media, paints a completely didn’t report on the Ukraine war that is unlike anything seen from inside the country. They don’t call it a war but a Special military Operation.
This was a rare program to get broadcast on the Russian Program 60 Minutes, a one-hour show, which is one of the primary tools Putin uses twice a day to shape the news in his view.
Normally this is a studio discussion that promotes the Kremlin line on absolutely everything, including on President Putin’s so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Putin and the Kremlin still maintains that the Russian offensive is going according to plan.
But on Monday night, studio guest Mikhail Khodarenok, a military analyst and retired colonel, painted a very different picture.
I Quote. “He warned that “the situation [for Russia] will clearly get worse” as Ukraine receives additional military assistance from the West and that “the Ukrainian army can arm a million people”.
Referring to Ukrainian soldiers, he noted: “The desire to defend their motherland very much exists. Ultimate victory on the battlefield is determined by the high morale of troops who are spilling blood for the ideas they are ready to fight for.
“The biggest problem with [Russia’s] military and political situation,” he continued, “is that we are in total political isolation and the whole world is against us, even if we don’t want to admit it. We need to resolve this situation.
Colonel Khodarenok
“The situation cannot be considered normal when against us, there is a coalition of 42 countries and when our resources, military-political and military-technical, are limited.”
There were other guests in the studio who set in silence. Even the host, Olga Skabeyeva, normally a fierce support of Putin appeared oddly subdued.
In many ways, it’s a case of “I told you so” from Mr. Khodarenok. Writing in Russia’s Independent Military Review back in February, before Moscow attacked Ukraine, the defense analyst had criticized “enthusiastic hawks and hasty cuckoos” for claiming that Russia would easily win a war against Ukraine.
One thing is certain is that any country who thought they could work with Russia, as they were somewhat civilized, has changed their mind. One current example is Finland and Sweden joining NATO.
Now it is coming out, from captured Russian soldiers, that Russian commanders are shooing their own wounded soldiers who are unable to walk instead of getting them medical care. As a Veteran that is hard for me to wrap my mind around such evil.
Many former Soviets Bloc country leaders are warning that if Putin is not stopped in Ukraine he will keep advancing and some see him attacking more then one country at a time. From what I understand from history and Putin’s desire to rebuild the old Soviet Union I do not think that is an idle speculation.
We need to keep our eye on the target and maintain diligence in our intelligence gathering to ensue we have up to date information for our client to make the right decisions.
Until next time be safe
Phil
by plittle@westcoastdetectives.us | Apr 15, 2022 | Blog
LAND MINES SPREAD ACROSS 300,000 SQ KM IN UKRAINE
Update Ukraine and the World:
The approach at West Coast Detectives International has been to do everything possible to ensure when we give facts to the client, they are correct. That means we use every resource that we can find no matter how much time or extra cost it might be to be sure of our facts, as much as humanely possible. I have had clients constantly come to us to clean up and finish work that other firms had started but failed to answer all the questions.
As I saw some post yesterday and today that the war in Ukraine is over, I wondered where their facts were coming from. War just doesn’t end when the invaders are retreating due to losses and failed equipment to regroup and resupply elsewhere.
Those that might think the war is over do not understand the leader of Russia’s goals, the times we live in and what has been prophesied thousands of years ago. Yes, when I am preparing facts for a client’s consideration in reference to as an example, would it be safe to look to Ukraine or Russia as a business venture, I look also at bible prophecy.
Even if you do not believe in God the fact is that what has been prophesied from thousands of years ago some of it has already happen. In the last few years events of prophecy are happening faster and faster. So, I use this resource along with many others to have a final report of factual data for our clients.
The war in Russia is not over but just beginning. Understanding how Russia fits into end time prophecy is critical for an accurate report for a client to make important decision. Some of what Russia has wanted out of the Middle East they have accomplished already. They desired a warm water port and when a past American administration blinked, they had moved into Syria and had their coveted warm water port as well as some bonus airfields. Putin see’s Russia as a major player and power broker in the Middle East, and he will do anything to accomplish that goal. (Fits with Prophecy)
For that to happen there must be a rebuilding of the old Soviet Empire for Russia to have a base to be able to accomplish that goal. The play for Ukraine was a next step for Putin to evaluate the waters and see how the world would respond. He did not expect the world response and it was a surprise to Putin and to many others. It was interesting to see how many of the NATO countries and some in Europe took the lead in pushing back to stop Putin, not just with sanctions but military support.
One must wonder if Putin were so disconnected to the quality of his military and equipment or did he think it would be so easy that even a military in disarray would be able to easily take a walk to Kiev. What ever the reason the war is not over and when we don’t understand the mind set of our enemies it becomes our downfall.
Putin will regroup and even if he is replaced someone will rise up in his place to work towards the building of the great “mother land.”
Putin is continuing the war as he retreats to East Ukraine to slaughter more innocent civilians and to be able to claim a victory for the May 9 celebration. He continues to fire missiles at targets in Ukraine and yesterday said he plans to target decision making centers in Kyiv and other cities.
Russian troops retreating from northern Ukraine have left thousands of land mines and insidious booby traps in such place as bags of potatoes, lawn chairs, children’s toys, even dead bodies. It is reported that approx. 300,000 square km could be potentially contaminated with mind fields. That is nearly half of the country of Ukraine. No, the war is not over.
It is every citizens responsibility to become informed about this period we live in and not put our heads in the sand as we become overloaded with runaway cost and our survival. We as citizens in America need to keep the fire to our politicians feet and if they will not listen in the U.S., we have elections in a few months we can remove them and put in people who will put our country first.
May God have Mercy on the United States of America.
Until next time be safe.
Phil
by plittle@westcoastdetectives.us | Apr 13, 2022 | Blog
COVERT VS COMMERICAL COVER INTELLIGENCE GATHERING.
Having served in the Military, Law enforcement and Intelligence I have experienced firsthand how set in our ways we can become in how we do things. Traditionally there has not been an openness to change in these organization’s on how they do things, which has led governments to not only spend more resources on the little results they get but miss very actionable information.
Early in law enforcement and move to the private sector I was learning about the trade craft of intelligence gathering. I soon learned in the private sector there was a more efficient and less costly way to gain information to act on.
The difference from Covert and Commercial Cover operations is in the approach. Covert operations dictate low profile, do not use the same hotels, restaurants twice or with different targets. Keep a low profile and do not become recognizable at the places you go. Be discreet, do not dress or do flashy things that would cause people to remember you. The covert approach takes a lot of time, resources and has a limited target base to work on.
I stumbled onto the effectiveness of Commercial Cover operations when I started to build my private network out around the word. The significant difference from Covert is the approach. You want to become known; you use the same hotels and restaurants and want to be remembered. When you bring a target into your favorite restaurant you want to impress your target with being known and this gives them comfort, they are dealing with a reputable person.
I found the significant difference in recruiting for commercial assets, was when you have an old company and are known on the worlds stage, in your area of work, people are interested in collaborating with you. In my business of Investigation, Security and Intelligence needed for my clients it involves all aspects of a country’s activities including the political climate.
When I started building my international network I was engaged in Israel and southern Lebanon and realized that not to for in the future would intelligence around terrorist activities be a worldwide need. With clients around the world and U.S. based clients looking to set up operations in foreign countries we had a need to be able to advise them accurately about the advisability of going forward in the country they might choose.
To build a proper profile on the country we needed real time information from the ground around every aspect of life and business. That included safety, security, business climate, schools, family living and the political climate both currently and looking forward.
My target list of agents to recruit would need a law enforcement and intelligence background and could still be working or retired with contacts. From my work and knowledge in Israel and Lebanon I started my search across Europe using close friends in government work who referred me to potential prospects. I spread from country to country by the relationships I established, and they referred me to others.
Already having a base in Mexico and south I looked to East Asia and developed a relationship with the retired head of CID of Hong Kong police, and he referred me to other countries in the region.
My approach was to task them with a subject and have them report monthly on that area and when a specific case for a client came up, they would react to what was needed including protection teams on the ground.
Thankfully, the technology has changed from the written report or cable through the fax machine to the internet and real time information. But the problems have only gotten worst and bigger. We still need good intelligence to make the right business decisions, which is increasing with the instability of the world.
If we can help you in any way, please contact us. Check our web site www.westcoastdetectives.us
Until next time be safe.
Phil
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