16 Apr Missing Persons
Private Investigators and missing persons go hand in hand together. Yes, Lipstick Investigations is Australia’s foremost relationships investigation firm, but we also carry out other forms of investigation such as background checks, business based inquiries, and missing persons.
Missing persons can be explained in three main groups:
Misplaced Persons
Misplaced persons aren’t really missing, just misplaced. This is one of the most common forms of missing person jobs we do and generally relates to people you have just lost track of. They aren’t really missing as such – it’s just that you don’t know where or how to contact them. Perhaps you are looking for a long-lost family member, an old flame you would like to check in with, an old friend from school or work, or even an adoption issue. Of course, nowadays social media like Facebook and even basic Google searches can help with this, but when you get stuck (and many people do) you can call a licensed private investigator to help. Investigators have the expertise and knowledge to track these individuals down and reunite you them.
People Who Don’t Want to be Found
This is also an extremely common reason for using a private detective. More often than not a person will not want to be found if they owe money, performing a criminal act or have criminal tendencies, are avoiding service of the legal process, or just wish to remain low-key (celebrities and people in the news). These people are still missing persons and can be located on most occasions. All we need is the know-how, some tenacity, and the financial capacity to look into the missing person.
The True Missing Person
The true missing person is when a person just disappears. It may be the fact that they wanted to run away from their problems and have just extracted themselves from the situation, or suffer some sort of mental disorder or a bout of dementia. Perhaps they just need some time out and gather their thoughts – but the family still worries obviously. And the worst-case investigators and clients alike – the missing person is a victim of foul play – kidnapping or murder.
Private detectives use a number of methods to investigate a missing person case. The most common methods are all done within the office. We have a number of databases that we have access to that the public doesn’t; plus the training and experience to use social media and Google to our advantage as well. Our other main tool is the telephone – it is amazing what you can learn by talking to people!
Of course, some missing person cases require us to get out into the real world and make field inquiries. Perhaps it is talking to people, or showing a photograph that will gather our next clue. A missing person’s case may also require surveillance, particularly if we don’t want to tip off the person that we are making inquiries.
If you have a missing person case that needs a discussion, please feel free to call us on 1300LIPSTICK or drop us a line by email at enquiries@lipstickinvestigations.com.au An investigator will only be too happy to have a free chat with you about the issue. This obligation-free talk will include pricing, methods, and timeframe.
KHALID SALAHUDDIN
Posted at 02:57h, 27 JulyI am the uncle of Asif Hadi, an international student from Bangladesh, mysteriously disappeared and gone missing who was studying at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. Asif went missing in 2004. I went to Sydney and went to Armidale where he was last seen in a rented bike. Nobody could give his whereabouts. Very painful situation for me and her mother (who is now living in Deltona, Florida, USA). I am in Ashburn, Virginia, USA and will communicate with you on her mom’s behalf. Please let me know what to do and how should we start this investigation. We are prepared to pay for your time. But as you know, we have limited resources. Her mom is going through severe depression. She thinks he is just hiding because of his bad grades in school. I contacted Sydney Police when I was there. Since he was an international student and had not any criminal background, police did not investigate that matter very strongly and said he may have committed suicide and closed the case on him i think in 2016 or so. We, the family of Asif Hadi, will greatly appreciate any help and information that you can provide. Thanks and regards.
lipstickinvestigation
Posted at 09:52h, 27 JulyKhalid,
As it was more than a decade since Asif disappeared, and the fact his mother feels he may be just ‘hiding out’ we would recommend our standard database searches in the first instance. After all this time it would be unlikely that Asif would be able to evade the databases that we have access to, and we would suspect that he would have settled in to a ‘normal life’ by now. So our standard databases should be the starting point. It is also the most cost effective starting point for an investigation such as this. All that we charge for this is an up front fee of A$400 to take the job on, and then we carry out our searches. If we find him we charge an additional A$400 as a ‘success fee’ and the job is done! If we don’t find him using this method all that you have spent in this instance is A$400.
So if we rule out locating him via our databases it will step over to a field based private investigation, and a proper missing persons assignment. We would have to get a lot of information from you about the background and identify of Asif including time-frames and study history etc, and we would also need written permission from you (or his mother) for the police to be able to assist with any information on your behalf. We would then launch an investigation in the area Asif was last seen (Armidale?) and try and retrace his steps and activities. Sadly the police will not have done this at the time because they don’t have the resources to send officers out and actually go through this scenario and physically investigate. They will monitor hospitals and criminal activity of course, and may assist us with bank accounts and mobile phones if they think it is warranted. We are happy to assist because ultimately we are getting paid to carry out the missing persons investigation on your behalf.
It is impossible to tell how long this may take. We may not get any leads due to the amount of time that has passed and you will spend less money. If we get leads, and the investigation continues, you will of course spend more because we just charge you by the hour at an hourly rate of A$220. You should be prepared for a minimum budget of say 30-50 hours for the initial on-site investigation. We do provide regular updates and you will be notified of any breakthroughs or issues we have along the way.
If you would like us to assist in way please feel free to email our Managing Director at david@lipstickinvestigations.com.au at any time and he will be happy to advise further.
The Lipstick Team