Detective Blog Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt

Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt Working for Heirs and Estate Administrators

Have large inheritances always passed you by? Grandma’s old sofa is worn out after 50 years of use, and Aunt Erna’s cake server set isn’t worth much either. The only inheritances you ever seem eligible for are the “guaranteed” 20 million from all those childless businessmen from Ghana who just happen to choose “you!!!!!” as their sole heir? But things can turn out very differently: if you are contacted by our heir investigators from Frankfurt/Main, you may actually be facing an unexpected inheritance. And since handling cases with minor inheritance sums would not be economically viable for us, you can expect a substantial financial gain.

 

In contrast to the authors of spam emails requesting advance payments before an alleged inheritance payout, our commercial and private detective agency works on real heir investigation cases. On the one hand, we are commissioned by estate administrators who wish to identify potential heirs before an estate is transferred to the state or to a suddenly appearing alleged heir without proof. On the other hand, families and potential heirs engage us in order to assert a legally secured, clearly verifiable inheritance claim. In many cases, our heir investigators even bring families back together, for example when a previously unknown cousin or a long-lost niece is suddenly (re)united with the family. Our detectives in Frankfurt am Main will also gladly handle your inheritance matters: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Worldwide Heir Services

What particularly distinguishes the heir investigators of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt is their excellent network: at the federal level, we operate eight strategically located offices across seven German states, and both nationally and internationally we benefit from well-maintained contacts with colleagues, authorities, and informants on all permanently inhabited continents. This allows us to trace heirs or inheritance fraudsters internationally within a short time and to contact or observe them directly on-site without lengthy and costly travel. Our work is divided into two main areas:

Identification and Search for Unknown Heirs

First, we investigate unknown heirs such as distant relatives, unknown (illegitimate) descendants, etc. Through digital and analog research, especially intensive archive work, our Frankfurt genealogists do their utmost to identify rightful heirs and prevent estates from falling to the state under applicable fiscal inheritance law or even into the hands of inheritance fraudsters. Of particular importance are documents such as marriage, birth, and death certificates, as well as family trees, which allow us to clearly prove who is entitled to inherit and who is not.

Verification of Inheritance Claims

Second, we are engaged to verify alleged heirs. This prevents cases of incorrectly assigned estates as well as deliberate inheritance fraud, in which perpetrators attempt to pose as rightful heirs using falsified documents and statements.

Acting Quickly Preserves Assets – Heir Investigation in Germany Is a Race Against Time

If a person asserts an inheritance claim without proof of succession and no other heirs are known, Section 352d of the Act on Proceedings in Family Matters and in Matters of Non-Contentious Jurisdiction (FamFG) applies (“Public Notice”). According to this provision, additional heirs are publicly sought so they can assert their claims. In such cases, we as heir investigators must locate potential heirs within the deadline set by the probate court (at least six weeks), so that their claims do not lapse. If no further heirs are found, the person who filed the claim automatically inherits — even if the claim is not conclusively proven.

 

Accordingly, estate administrators, as well as friends and relatives of the deceased, should act quickly and engage the services of our detective agency in Frankfurt am Main if no heir is known. Otherwise, in the worst case, an inheritance fraudster may deliberately exploit loopholes in German inheritance law. Our professional approach is always aimed at preventing injustice and ensuring that the rightful heirs receive what they are entitled to. This is also tied to a business necessity for us:

Fees of Our Hessian Genealogists

Unlike typical investigations, our Frankfurt heir investigators are not compensated on an hourly basis when searching for unknown heirs, but on a success basis. The payment obligation lies with the identified heirs, who, after receiving the inheritance, pay us a percentage share. This means there is no financial risk for our clients.

 

However, since this also exposes us to a particular risk of loss — if we cannot identify an heir or cannot locate an heir who has moved away, we receive no payment and have effectively worked without compensation — the court-regulated percentage-based remuneration for genealogists is correspondingly significant.

Commissioning Our Heir Investigators in Frankfurt

Our heir investigators and detectives work for private individuals, court-appointed or privately engaged estate administrators, attorneys, and notaries. After being commissioned, we conduct digital research in genealogy archives, social networks, and forums, and carry out on-site investigations, including interviews, information gathering from authorities, and verification of the authenticity of documents presented as proof of inheritance entitlement.

 

We will be happy to advise you personally, by phone, or via email regarding costs, possible approaches, and chances of success: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de or +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Questionable Repair Estimate

In the summer of 2016, the local client of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency in Fulda* caused accident damage with his car. By mistake, he had rolled backward at very low speed into a parked vehicle. This resulted in contact between the tow hitch of the causing vehicle, which was covered with a protective cap, and the license plate of the parked car. The repair cost estimate prepared afterward for the damage amounted to a four-digit sum and formed the basis for the insurance compensation payment of our detectives’ client in Fulda. The client not only had to pay a deductible, but also had to accept an increase in premiums.

 

However, since the visible damage caused by the accident only involved a small dent in the license plate and the photographs supplied with the estimate did not correlate with the damage originally established, our client doubted the accuracy of the workshop’s offer and suspected collusion between the auto mechanic and the injured party, who, in his view, may have agreed on joint insurance fraud. The objective of our detective agency in Fulda was to examine this suspicion and, if confirmed, present court-admissible evidence.

Photo Comparison with an Identical Vehicle

In the first investigative step, our lead private detective in Fulda carried out a visual inspection of a vehicle identical to the damaged accident vehicle. In order to compare the photographs from the estimate with the identical vehicle, our investigator took photos from identical perspectives; in some cases, this required removing individual parts. The photographed views included not only detailed images of the license plate holder, whose damage on the accident vehicle was undisputed, but also front and top views, in some cases with the hood open.

 

Even during the initial evaluation of the photographs, inconsistencies became apparent. The images of the alleged accident vehicle showed various features that did not exist on the identical car. These included, among other things, a retaining tab, a factory-made longitudinal indentation in the bodywork, several drill holes for the license plate holder, and a dent in the plastic that did not correlate with the course of the accident. To discuss these points and other open questions, our commercial investigator went to the auto repair shop that had prepared the estimate the following day.

Interview with the Workshop Owner

During our commercial detective’s visit in Fulda during the regular business hours of the auto repair shop, the shop was found to be present but closed at that time. By interviewing local residents, the researcher was able to determine the residential address of the workshop owner, who had also prepared the estimate. In fact, he encountered the auto mechanic on his property, described the situation truthfully, that is, without using a cover story, and questioned him about various unresolved points.

 

At first, the mechanic confirmed that he had personally prepared the estimate and the photographs. Since the mechanic’s images did not correlate with the comparison vehicle and our investigator had to remove parts in order to photograph the same perspectives, the detective asked the mechanic whether he had altered or removed any parts before taking the pictures. The mechanic denied having made any changes or removals apart from the license plate. When asked further what exactly had been repaired, the workshop owner stated that he had to straighten the bumper behind the license plate and the license plate itself. When the investigator asked how such a bumper repair would be carried out, the mechanic became irritated; he had almost 30 years of professional experience and knew exactly what he was doing. Our private detective in Fulda then thanked him and took his leave. Also suspicious was the fact that the address line of the injured party in the estimate had been covered with correction fluid and handwritten over. The mechanic stated that he had not made this change.

Obtaining Two Independent Expert Opinions

Assuming that the documented damage on which the original repair offer was based was to be repaired, the investigator from our commercial detective agency in Fulda obtained an alternative quote from an official authorized dealership in the region with the same billing system. This quote amounted to only two-thirds of the first estimate — among other reasons because the hourly labor rate of the original free workshop was comparable to that of a Porsche center or a Mercedes authorized dealership and was around 100–300 percent above the rates of various comparable workshops requested in the same region. The stated number of hours for the repairs was also described as completely excessive — the authorized dealership would not have estimated even half that amount of time.

 

In the further course of the investigation, our detective visited a mechanic friend in order to question him about the matter and, in particular, about whether the vehicle photographed originally could have been the accident vehicle at all. The mechanic stated unequivocally that the photographs from the estimate could not show a car of that type under any circumstances — regardless of model year. He also confirmed our investigator’s suspicion that, in the event of an impact strong enough to cause the stated damage to the bumper behind the license plate, greater damage would also have occurred to the license plate itself, manifesting in material cracks in the bumper and in a partially broken license plate holder. However, according to the estimate, the photographs taken, and the statement of the suspicious mechanic himself, this was not the case.

Billing of Pre-Existing Damage through Our Client’s Insurance

The photo of the damage to the license plate did not correlate with the photo of the same area that the client of our detective agency in Fulda had taken at the accident scene. In particular, the mechanic cited a second dent at another point on the license plate, but logic rules out that a single contact with a covered tow hitch could cause two dents approximately 15 centimeters apart horizontally. Since the second dent was accompanied by various material cracks in which, unlike the clearly caused dent by our client, visibly more dirt had already accumulated, it must be concluded that there was pre-existing damage that was billed in the course of this accident. On the day of the accident, the injured party had already admitted a similar pre-existing damage with the words, “This is going to be expensive, I had that just a short while ago.”

 

It is also conceivable that the dent was deliberately staged. At least on the comparison vehicle, the plastic in this area could be pressed in by hand and automatically returned to its original shape after a short wait. If this had also been possible on the alleged accident vehicle, a damage claim could easily have been fabricated in this way.

Clear Result: Insurance Fraud

In this investigation by our private detective agency in Fulda, the issue was not the determination of fault for the accident, but rather whether, and if so how, an unlawful financial advantage was obtained at the expense of the insurance company and the insured person who caused the accident by presenting false facts or by distorting or suppressing true facts. In the end, it must be concluded that the car photographed for the estimate could by no means have been the accident vehicle.

 

It is obvious that the older damage was billed through our client’s insurance. The actual damage was merely minor and would have resulted only in the cost of a new license plate. Moreover, by the end of the investigation, neither the license plate nor the front bumper of the accident vehicle had actually been replaced.

*Notice*

Note: For reasons of discretion and data protection, the locations and certain personal details have been altered without changing the substance of the actual events.

 

*Note: All assignments of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt are processed at our headquarters by our operations management in Frankfurt. We have a network of qualified, vetted investigators who can be active on site for you within a short time.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Data Is the Primary Focus of Modern Economic Criminals

As Germany’s—and, after “Brexit,” perhaps soon even Europe’s—banking and financial center, as well as Hesse’s number one economic hub, Frankfurt is a prime location for numerous types of criminal activity. The immense daily flows of money attract petty criminals, organized gangs and professional corporate spies who aim to scout out companies and resell their confidential data and innovations to competitors. Many companies are unaware of the growing threat posed by cybercrime and espionage and negligently leave internal data almost completely unprotected on servers that can be easily hacked and infiltrated with minimal technical expertise (the latter both in the form of data theft and data sabotage).

 

Our Frankfurt commercial detectives repeatedly emphasize that the threat from the internet can hardly be overestimated. Internal company data such as product development documents, customer databases and patent details must be protected with the utmost care—especially, but not only, in innovation-driven companies—from competitors and their spies. Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main provides preventive support through improvements to IT security structures, optimization of burglary protection for business premises, detection of listening devices and the establishment of bug-proof rooms: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Threat from Within the Workforce

Companies in Hesse, and especially in Frankfurt, are not only threatened from external sources; dangers also lurk within their own ranks. Morally less severe, but often equally damaging in outcome, are negligent employees who use easily guessable passwords or handle confidential data carelessly, thereby exposing it to hackers via cloud services, for example. Even more serious are bad actors within the workforce who wait for opportunities to pass on data and thereby earn substantial additional income from competing companies (bribery). In the worst case, such criminal employees are not merely seeking occasional financial gain but are spies planted by external companies, deliberately passing on data and causing significant economic harm to their employer.

 

All of this largely takes place unnoticed by the public, as few companies are willing to admit how often and to what extent they have been affected by breaches of confidentiality and internal security leaks. The investigators of our commercial detective agency in Frankfurt therefore place particular importance on handling such cases with the utmost discretion and resolving them promptly in order to prevent greater damage to the commissioning companies.

Globalization as an International Catalyst for Espionage

Even in the most harmonious and close-knit companies, trust between employer and employee can be abused in deceptive ways. Internal security breaches and leaks of confidential information (whether intentional or negligent) occur almost everywhere, especially where few security barriers exist. A well-developed security concept, along with clearly defined rules and consequences for the disclosure of sensitive data, can help foster awareness among unsuspecting employees and deter minor offenders, but they rarely impress professional corporate spies or deter them from their illegal activities.

 

In today’s era of globalization, expanding global markets and increasing pressure to succeed, it has become part of the business model of many companies to spy on competitors’ innovations and bring them to market before the original developer. All parties involved are aware that this constitutes industrial espionage. In addition to plagiarism and trademark violations, there are other forms of illegal information transfer that often cause significant damage; for example, the transmission of customer databases can lead to aggressive customer poaching. The disclosure of confidential and protected information by employees not only violates every collective agreement and employment contract, but also constitutes a criminal offense. Our private detectives in Frankfurt actively assist in clarifying such cases. Through the infiltration of individual investigators into affected companies or through external surveillance of suspicious employees, Aaden Detective Agency helps obtain court-admissible evidence and thus contributes to the conviction of offenders.

Early Intervention to Prevent Further Damage

Although it is difficult by nature to determine reliable figures regarding the ratio between employee espionage and external data theft, based on the experience of our detective agency in Frankfurt am Main, each accounts for roughly half of the cases. External attacks in today’s digital age are often carried out by hackers acting on behalf of competitors, virtually “breaking into” company networks to extract information. However, other sophisticated strategies for obtaining internal data also prove successful: pretextual phone calls are used to gather information about workflows or the presence of specific employees; fraudulent emails requesting the resubmission of confidential data can be equally effective when trusting secretaries or administrative staff comply, thereby unintentionally aiding competitors.

 

The economic damage resulting from such carefully planned and executed attacks on internal company data is difficult to quantify. Beyond obvious losses, such as declining sales compared to the previous year, it is generally impossible to determine what profits could have been achieved if a company had been able to launch a new product without interference from spies. Furthermore, it is nearly impossible to assess potential follow-up profits from resales or patent expansions. Losses in the millions are not uncommon. Therefore, even the slightest suspicion of internal misconduct or external attacks should prompt the involvement of competent experts in the investigation. You can confidently rely on our experienced detectives for Frankfurt and the Rhine-Main region: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de.

An Initial Suspicion Arises? We Can Help.

If you suspect that one of your employees is passing on sensitive company data or that your company is being spied on by competitors through hackers, infiltrated agents or similar means, do not hesitate to contact Aaden Commercial Detective Agency in Frankfurt am Main as soon as possible. Our investigators will provide you with a free consultation regarding our options for identifying corporate spies or uncovering external espionage activities. You can reach us Monday to Friday from 08:00 to 19:00 at the following number: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Commercial Detectives Investigate Disloyal Employees and External Theft

A brochure published in 2013 by the Lower Saxony State Criminal Police Office (LKA) on transport crime reveals alarming figures: more than 200,000 transports in Germany are affected by cargo theft each year, contributing significantly to the Europe-wide total losses of over 8 billion euros (European Union estimate). The sense of safety in Germany, based on the assumption that cargo theft mainly occurs in Eastern Europe, is increasingly giving way to the realization that organized gangs and cunning warehouse workers or transporters—acting alone or in collusion—also seize, disappear and illegally sell goods and parts of shipments within Germany. Management of affected companies is often forced to commission commercial detectives for surveillance or to infiltrate their businesses and warehouses in order to clarify the disappearance of revenue or transported goods.

 

Particularly in view of the forecast by the Federal Ministry of Transport, which anticipates a 27% increase in transport volumes and a 53% increase in the value of goods per ton by 2025, damages in the high millions to billions are expected for German companies alone. 30.5% of gross domestic product is accounted for by manufacturing and construction industries. Thus, more than one-third of Germany’s economic output is threatened by transport crime and must be protected using all available means. Through infiltration of transport companies, surveillance of trucks during loading and unloading, and pretextual meetings or contact initiation, our Frankfurt detectives help affected businesses identify cargo thieves and secure court-admissible evidence. In the field of warehouse and transport crime in particular, our detective agency in Frankfurt am Main has extensive positive investigative experience and is also available to support your company: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Warehouse Crime as an Internal Problem in Manufacturing Companies

Losses of goods do not only occur during transport due to the negligence of truck drivers and the cunning of organized gangs; in many cases, they are caused by employees within the company acting deliberately. They often steal parts of shipments not during transport, but already in the warehouse, in order to keep them or resell them illegally for profit, thus committing theft, embezzlement and handling stolen goods. Especially when warehouses are not located near the actual production facility or company headquarters, it is difficult or even impossible for management to detect such misconduct promptly, let alone prove it. Due to privacy protections, which also apply in the workplace, surveillance cameras are only partially permissible and helpful; much occurs where cameras do not reach. The infiltration of our Frankfurt private detectives into the affected business or warehouse provides an effective way to catch disloyal and criminal employees in the act.

 

Through misappropriation and embezzlement of warehouse goods, as well as trafficking in such goods, German companies incur additional losses in the hundreds of millions, beyond transport theft. The exact extent cannot be determined, as many offenses are discovered far too late, if at all, and the number of unreported cases is considered very high. In addition to the value of the stolen goods, further costs arise from necessary re-production, repackaging, storage and transport. During an undercover warehouse operation, the respective investigator poses as a new colleague of the suspected warehouse employees. Through personal and professional interaction between detective and employee under the credible cover of “colleague,” court-admissible evidence of theft and resale can be gathered. The documented investigative results from observations and interviews conducted by our undercover commercial detective from Frankfurt, possible testimony in court, and photographic documentation enable the conviction of the offending employee.

Reduction of Crime Risk | Employee Awareness and Additional Security Measures

The aforementioned LKA Lower Saxony brochure highlights which types of cargo are most attractive to thieves and handlers of stolen goods. The “ideal goods” typically have the following characteristics:

 

• significant market value,
• a broad customer base,
• preferably a manageable size to facilitate removal.

 

Our detective agency in Frankfurt views the last point critically, as we have handled numerous theft cases involving rather bulky goods: raw materials, tools and construction materials, scrap metal and more. In such cases, removal is usually carried out using an additional truck due to the size and nature of the goods.

 

To minimize the risk of theft during transport, it is essential to properly train transport personnel. Rest areas are the most common crime scenes, as tarpaulins are cut open in the shadow of trucks or under the cover of night, and goods are stolen without the driver noticing. In one out of five thefts, there are even attacks on drivers, sometimes putting their lives at risk. In cases involving violence or even the threat of violence, the offense is no longer classified as theft, but as robbery under Section 249 of the German Criminal Code. Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt/Main is happy to advise logistics companies and their clients on improving security measures to ensure the safety of drivers and goods as effectively as possible: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de.

Information Leakage as a Starting Point for Offenders

Theft committed by external criminals is often only possible because internal information has been accessed beforehand. This can occur through:

 

• targeted wiretapping of telephone calls,
• bribery or corruption of employees of the target company for the purpose of disclosing confidential information,
• collusion with employees in the form of profit-sharing from the theft,
• espionage of digital data (hacking, spyware, phishing, etc.).

 

Most security measures taken in response to these issues are of little use if the transport driver or the involved warehouse employees themselves are responsible for the disappearance of the cargo. These criminals can only be exposed by catching them in the act or through incriminating statements—for example, through the deployment of our private detectives from Frankfurt am Main.

Incomplete Deliveries, Irregularities in the Warehouse – What Can You Do as an Entrepreneur?

If your production facility has become the site of unexplained disappearances of valuable goods, whether once or repeatedly, or if you have justified suspicion that your employees may be misappropriating parts of shipments in the warehouse or during transport, we invite you to contact our Frankfurt commercial detective agency.

 

Together with you, we develop a concept to locate the missing cargo and identify those responsible—including, where possible, the handlers of stolen goods. Whether through surveillance of suspicious employees, monitoring cargo along transport routes, or the undercover deployment of a detective, our agency is at your disposal with these and many other operational options. You are welcome to receive a free consultation during our business hours (Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 19:00) at the following number: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Accounting fraud occurs across all industries

In 2013, accounting fraud in the healthcare sector caused a total of 41 million euros in damage; the health damage inflicted on patients through false prescriptions and billing for services not rendered cannot even be expressed in numbers. In the healthcare industry, statistics on accounting fraud are repeatedly compiled and prominently published in the media, but this type of fraud also exists in almost all other industries, only there it is not exposed with the same public attention. While patients and health insurers are the main victims in healthcare, businesses are severely harmed in commerce by false expense reports and time fraud cases.

 

Company management usually does not have the capacity to examine all employees’ invoices in detail, but suspicious cases often arise from everyday work, because there are customer complaints, tips from other employees, or statements and activities by the possibly delinquent employee themselves do not seem plausible. Through the targeted deployment of our detective agency in Frankfurt am Main, suspicious employees can be investigated and fraud cases uncovered with court-admissible evidence: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Investigations in Cases of Suspected Employee Fraud

Although external and freelance employees may certainly find it particularly easy to falsify their billing for appointments outside the company premises and the expense reports required for them, the majority of billing fraudsters are found among permanent employees in the company building. It is enough to start work one hour later every day, consistently extend the lunch break by one hour, or regularly leave the workplace earlier in order to obtain an unlawful financial advantage through fraudulent means. The resulting damage per individual employee may still remain within a manageable range, but it is a) the regularity and spread of such behavior among other employees that ultimately damages the company in the long term, and b) the loss of turnover that can quickly result from tasks not being completed, for example because customer inquiries are not processed in time.

 

Our Frankfurt commercial detectives observe conspicuous employees and, with the help of qualified IT forensic specialists, also take action in cases of abusive use of the company computer (for example excessive private use of social media) when there is a justified initial suspicion. An Excel spreadsheet that has been open for three hours but unchanged for just as long, while vacation bookings are being made on the company PC, irregularities in invoices and disappearing materials are often the first signs of internal employee fraud cases.

Few Companies Protect Themselves – Only Private Detectives Expose Weaknesses

Small and medium-sized companies in particular often believe themselves safe from fraud cases due to the small number of employees and a familiar, trusting working environment, while large, internationally active corporations increasingly take action against accounting and expense fraud. Even today in the information age, embezzlement of funds and falsification of accounts still rank ahead of data theft and industrial espionage among the most common economic crimes. In addition to the economic damage caused by fraudsters, which can even lead to the ruin of smaller companies, the reputational damage is also enormous – customers switch to the competition out of dissatisfaction. Productivity and efficiency among the other employees also suffer in some cases. For these reasons in particular, preventive and control management is especially important, as is, in cases of suspicion, the commissioning of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt a.M., which obtains court-admissible evidence against fraudulent employees.

 

Companies with inadequate control mechanisms stumble upon fraudulent accounting entries – if at all – more by chance than by design, and even then only rarely know how to proceed legally and properly with such a criminal employee. Our private detectives in Frankfurt/Main therefore offer company management not only their services as investigators in individual cases, but also work as security consultants for future procedures and control mechanisms in order to eliminate previous weak points after analyzing work processes. Two fraud experts from PricewaterhouseCoopers even recommend a strict zero-tolerance policy toward fraudulent employees, even if it is common practice in the company concerned to occasionally turn a blind eye to minor losses. According to the two experts, a lenient approach to fraud and embezzlement may encourage other employees to commit similar frauds as well, since they have nothing severe to fear in the way of sanctions or penalties from company management. The fact that this view is by no means unopposed is shown by the case linked here from our detective agency.

Preventive Measures and Deterrence of Potential Free Riders

Often, accounting fraud does not initially involve criminal intent at all. But accidentally misreported amounts and the daily diversion of a few minutes from working time quickly grow into large sums and several hours off when the employee concerned realizes that their small mistakes are neither noticed nor punished. In such cases, too, the sums are usually smaller, so that no sense of wrongdoing arises: “They can afford it; a few (hundred) euros won’t be missed,” is the approximate motto.

 

In order to catch fraudsters in time before larger amounts of money are stolen (six-figure sums by individual offenders are not uncommon), coordinated measures by full professionals should be implemented. Within the company, greater awareness must be created of loopholes and opportunities for fraud cases so that offenses can be combated preventively. The deployment of our detectives from Frankfurt is therefore useful not only after accounting fraud has been committed, but also as prevention. Making an example of one case also protects against copycats. In addition, for any company that cares about its reputation, it is important that internal problems do not become public, but are treated confidentially by all involved, including investigators, and resolved as quickly as possible – we guarantee maximum discretion.

First Suspicion within Your Own Company? Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt Steps In for You.

If you have noticed conspicuous accounting entries by individual employees or other irregularities in your business, our Frankfurt detective team will be happy to take action for you in order to obtain court-admissible evidence regarding the guilt or innocence of the employees concerned. However, it is important to know that investigations may only be carried out when there is a justified initial suspicion and not generally against all employees, since general monitoring is not legally permitted due to the protection of employees’ privacy. If, however, you have noticeable expense reports whose irregularities and details the employee cannot satisfactorily explain in a one-on-one conversation, our commercial detectives in Frankfurt am Main are at your service around the clock. If you have any questions about the next steps, let us advise you free of charge by telephone from Monday to Friday, or write us an email at info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Definition by Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt

While the term compliance has been standard in business terminology and in large companies for structuring corporate operations for years, the majority of citizens are hardly familiar with the precise meaning of this critical foundation for smooth workflows. According to the German Corporate Governance Code (DCGK), compliance is defined as adherence to all legal, ethical, regulatory, and internal company rules, which are overseen by the company’s management board. Ensuring compliance with laws and internal regulations is codified in Sections 9, 30, and 130 of the German Act on Regulatory Offenses (OWiG) and is intended to guarantee that no crimes are committed from within the company. Our commercial detectives from Frankfurt am Main regularly emphasize the importance of such compliance measures when working with medium-sized companies, both to better protect the company from internal and external threats and to optimize employee training, since employees are daily at risk of various offenses that are the focus of our investigations.

 

The major challenge with compliance lies in the responsibility of the company’s management board: If an employee violates company rules and thereby breaches compliance, they can cause financial or reputational damage to the company, either knowingly or unknowingly, and may not only be held accountable themselves in court but could also implicate the management board if it has failed in its supervisory duties. Therefore, precise monitoring of internal company processes is essential. At the slightest suspicion against one or more employees, the engagement of our Frankfurt detective agency is recommended: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

How Do Companies Ensure Smooth Operations?

Most large companies have now implemented processes to ensure compliance, generally referred to as Compliance Management Systems (CMS). These can include a wide range of workflows and control mechanisms that sometimes operate smoothly but may occasionally function only partially. Problems often arise during employee surveys about their workflows, as any omission or failure to mention important details can have consequences. Similarly, verifying employee attendance in compliance training sessions often does not yield the intended results—for example, while a participation certificate may exist, it cannot be fully confirmed whether the employee attended the entire training session.

 

While these procedures, reviews of personnel files, and interviews with supervisors, business partners, and colleagues are permitted, more detailed investigations of a specific employee—such as monitoring financial transactions or observing private life—are considered illegal unless a justified suspicion exists. The same applies to the workplace. Our Frankfurt private detectives are therefore only deployed in concrete cases of suspicion; otherwise, both they and the commissioning management could commit an offense under the Federal Data Protection Act.

An Employee Has Been Caught Violating Compliance – What Next?

If an employee is proven to have violated compliance, several courses of action are possible: While many companies show leniency in cases of a first-time offense (depending on the exact violation) and merely issue a warning, others may seek immediate termination with compensation claims. Our commercial detective agency in Frankfurt/Main strongly recommends this step in serious violations, to set an example and demonstrate to potential imitators the consequences of similar behavior. Additionally, if infractions are frequently overlooked in a company, future compliance violations could be defended by citing previous leniency, claiming equal treatment. Educating staff about detective interventions can have multiple positive effects, as illustrated in this example.

 

Of course, labor law measures require court-admissible evidence, which our Frankfurt detectives can provide if initial suspicions are confirmed. Immediate termination in medium-sized and large companies is sometimes only approved by judges if a functional compliance system exists. Without such a system, companies often prefer mutual, discreet settlements rather than issuing immediate terminations, which could otherwise serve as a clear lesson for imitators. Implementing or improving internal compliance processes requires a thorough understanding of potential workflow issues. Our commercial investigators from Frankfurt am Main are happy to advise you in this regard and are always available: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de.

What Are the Advantages of Working with Our Frankfurt Detectives?

Our detectives from Frankfurt a.M. can conduct so-called background checks on employees if a justified suspicion exists. Limited random data comparisons regarding accounts and communication information are permitted, but targeted checks on individual employees are prohibited; otherwise, fines and compensation claims of up to €300,000 may be incurred. A recent example is the data protection scandal at Deutsche Bahn under Hartmut Mehdorn, in which data from 173,000 employees were compared with that of suppliers, including bank accounts in some cases. The consequence: Mehdorn, half the DB management board, and the anti-corruption officer lost their positions.

 

The use of commercial and private detectives is therefore not always possible, as the Federal Data Protection Act regards employees’ privacy as highly protected. Company management cannot arbitrarily monitor or observe employees. Our Hesse-based detective agency only becomes active when there are demonstrable indications that justify further investigation of the respective employees. If there are any doubts, our investigators provide advisory support and explain both the measures available in your specific case and those prohibited by law and evidence considerations: +49 69 1201 8454-0. For drafting compliance regulations, our experienced private detectives from Frankfurt am Main are also happy to assist management teams. In general, the more precise and detailed the regulations, the fewer employees unknowingly breach them. A large percentage of employees who unintentionally violate compliance can be guided onto the correct path through a well-structured standard regulatory framework.

*Note

Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main does not provide legal advice. Please contact your trusted law firm for this purpose; we are happy to provide recommendations upon request.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Person Search Due to Paternity Concerns

Real detectives are not film or television heroes, but flesh-and-blood humans. Thus, we can be wrong. In the following case, our private detectives from Frankfurt am Main doubted the mental health of our young client, Mr. Hanau, who actually believed he had impregnated a stripper during a private “lap dance”! Naturally, the investigators pointed out to the client during the briefing that conception without sexual intercourse and through multiple layers of clothing would be biologically highly unlikely, yet the late-twenties client was plagued by serious doubts. Fathering a child and not taking responsibility, he believed, would violate his moral values. Despite our objections that searching for the stripper and her alleged baby would likely be pointless and that, for data protection reasons, we could only provide minimal information without the potential mother’s consent, he insisted vehemently on the person search through our detective agency in Frankfurt/Main: “If you don’t do it, another detective will.” And he was indisputably right — so our researchers got to work.

Aftermath of a Bachelor Party

The background known to the client is quickly told: a bachelor party, alcohol flowing in streams, a strip club in Frankfurt, a credit card bill for private dances and blurred memories of an ejaculation during the lap dance — the latter is an embarrassment for most men, for others perhaps completely normal or even desired. The client of our private detectives in Frankfurt a.M., however, dealt with this situation entirely differently than the average club visitor: he feared (or hoped?) a pregnancy. How he came up with this idea remained a mystery to us throughout the entire investigation — and that lasted four months, four months in which we exchanged information with the alleged father-to-be at least weekly and still did not really get a clear picture of him.

 

Before turning to our Frankfurt private detective agency, Mr. Hanau carried out his own research by visiting the strip club and finding out the stage name of “his” dancer. This name is as interchangeable as can be imagined and therefore an extremely poor investigative lead. In addition, our client received the information that the dancer had recently no longer been working for the club. Where she lived and whether she was pregnant was none of his business. Naturally, Mr. Hanau concluded from the information that the dancer had left the club that the reason must be a pregnancy. Finally, he succeeded in identifying the supposedly pregnant woman in an older promotional photo of the club.

Determining the Real Name from a Social Media Profile | Detective Work in the 21st Century

Pretextual inquiries with employees at the club and also with the owner personally brought our commercial detectives from Frankfurt am Main no new information. However, by investigating the tax office of the establishment, we were able to determine the identities of the female employees subject to social insurance who had left during the relevant period. Matching one of the two to the researched stage name was not possible, because the last known dancers from the club with that same name had already disappeared from the business years earlier. In addition, the far greater part of the strippers working there were self-employed.

 

Using the promotional photo mentioned above, our researching Frankfurt detective managed to discover a link to a person on social networks. After publication, this lady had been the only one to share the photo on the various social media profiles of the club, also advertising the establishment from time to time, and she strongly resembled the woman depicted, although the quality of the promotional photo — especially the lighting — did not allow for clear identification. The next step was therefore to determine the real person behind a social media profile with an altered name and a verifiable address — usually a difficult and sometimes impossible task, but one for which there are a whole range of starting points. Through a trick, our detective agency from Frankfurt am Main learned the real name behind the profile and then identified three addresses in the Frankfurt area where persons with that name were said to live.

Identification Attempts at the Identified Addresses

In order to check whether one of the identified namesakes was the sought-after stripper, surveillance had to be carried out at the respective addresses. Two of the women had been born in the mid-1980s, the third already in the mid-1970s, so she was probably too old to match the known promotional photo. Ergo, our deployed Hessian private detective began his surveillance with the two younger women. At the first address it took a full three days before he even saw her, and he had to determine that it was definitely not the person sought. During all that time, we were not allowed to tell Mr. Hanau either the names of the identified persons or the residential addresses, because he had no legitimate interest in this information. He trusted us blindly by willingly commissioning the continuation of the investigation and paying on time, even though we gave him no great hope of a successful outcome — his trust was to be rewarded.

 

At the address of the second woman, who had been born in the mid-1980s, a baby stroller in the hallway suggested the presence of at least one infant in the apartment building. Since our commission was now already about four months old and the bachelor party had taken place ten months earlier, this could at least be interpreted as an indication. It again took two days before our private investigator from Frankfurt/Main saw his target person — namely when she came out of the apartment building with a baby stroller. Using a pretext developed in advance, he approached the woman and asked whether she was the sought-after dancer. A clear resemblance was definitely present — both to the promotional photo and to the profile pictures of the identified social media profile. At first, the mother did not show her hand for a long time, but eventually, contrary to our own forecasts, she confirmed our investigative success!

Immaculate Conception? This Is What the Target Person Says:

Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main had thus found the person sought. But one decisive question still remained: Was the baby Mr. Hanau’s child? The mother could remember the night of the bachelor party and also the dance with our client; the following is the conversation between her and our investigator:

Could a Pair of Trousers Be the Culprit?

“We were both in no good condition, he totally drunk and I on Persil [street name for cocaine, Aaden]. It was only because of the stuff that I got into the business in the first place — the baby made me clean again and I got out immediately. Before that I was a completely normal student and then I went downhill. At some point I could no longer stand it without the stuff, especially not while dancing, when you constantly have to let old sweaty fat guys grab and grope you. With Persil, it eventually does not matter that much anymore. But he was very nice, really adorable, one of those who do not become aggressive and do not lose all boundaries when they drink, but rather become tender and caring. That is why I went too far while dancing and he came in his pants — not that we did not have that more often. The bad thing is only: he was with his thing directly at my ... well, you know.”

 

“But because of the clothing, it could not have led to conception, could it?” asked our detective from Frankfurt/Main.

 

“Well, how then?! I paid attention in biology class. So he was wearing cloth trousers and I was only wearing a string, and there was quite a lot of it too, it soaked straight through, a huge stain. But that really cannot be, can it?”

 

“Did you have unprotected intercourse with other people at the time of conception?”

 

“No, really not, I was glad whenever I did not have to see any men outside of working hours! But it still cannot be!”

 

“So you do not know who the father is?”

 

“No, no idea. It is a mystery to me as well, but I do not believe in the Holy Virgin Mary either. Maybe at some point I was simply so high that I later forgot something had happened with someone ...”

A Paternity Test Is the Only Solution.

“I will tell you something,” our Frankfurt commercial investigator tried to steer the conversation toward the objective of the assignment, “I cannot really judge this from a distance, I am not a biologist and I do not know you at all. I do not know how, when and with whom a child was conceived. But two things are certain: you were pregnant and my client has, for some reason, the very persistent conviction that he became a father that evening. Unfortunately, I never understood why he believes that so firmly. Your details are safe with me and the detective agency for which I work; we are not allowed to pass them on to our client without your consent. But I would like to ask you for your phone number so that we can speak with each other again. I already have your address anyway, so this saves us the driving. In return, you will receive my contact details and those of our client. He would be very happy to receive your call, and the way I got to know him, I am sure he is not the type of father who shirks his responsibility. You can then decide for yourself whether you want to call him.”

 

The visibly unsettled mother agreed to the exchange of details and thanked our researcher. She would think about whether she wanted to call Mr. Hanau. More than two weeks have passed since then, and so far she has not contacted the client of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt a. M. Whether we will receive definitive clarification about this case and the identity of the father remains to be seen. Certainty can only be obtained through a paternity test, and under German law the mother must consent to it; Mr. Hanau cannot force anything. That there may actually be something to our client’s story seemed barely imaginable to our detectives at the beginning of the investigation, but if even the mother has doubts, we must state what we said at the beginning: detectives can be mistaken.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Notice

Note: For reasons of discretion and data protection, the locations and certain personal details have been altered without changing the substance of the actual events.

What Exactly Is Bankruptcy or Insolvency Fraud? Which Offenses Fall under This Term?

Time and again, newspapers report on companies and well-known individuals who have had to file for insolvency, whether in a business or private context. But what exactly does the term bankruptcy or insolvency fraud—often mentioned in such reports—mean? Is every concealment of assets or the hiding of additional funds in the context of insolvency proceedings automatically an illegal and punishable act of fraud? What this term encompasses and which offenses fall under its definition will be explained in more detail below by the commercial detectives of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt/Main. Since the term “bankruptcy” is considered legally outdated and has been replaced by “insolvency,” the following will refer exclusively to insolvency fraud.

Unlawful Retention of Insolvency Assets

As the term suggests, insolvency fraud refers to economic crimes committed in connection with insolvency; in the majority of cases, the insolvent individual or the managing director of an insolvent company removes money or other valuable assets from the insolvency estate in order to retain them personally. Filing for insolvency entirely for fraudulent purposes—for example, to fend off persistent creditors—also falls under this category. In addition, delayed filing for insolvency, meaning a delay of more than 21 days, is included.

 

However, insolvency fraud refers only to the unlawful retention of assets, not to legal actions that may nevertheless be morally questionable in certain cases. Legally, such offenses are referred to as bankruptcy crimes under §§ 283 and 283a of the German Criminal Code, even though the terms bankruptcy fraud and insolvency fraud are more commonly used in everyday language. If you suspect insolvency fraud to your detriment, you are welcome to contact our commercial detective agency in Frankfurt am Main so that we can document and prove the fraudulent conduct in a court-admissible manner: +49 69 1201 8454-0.

Further Variants of Insolvency Fraud

In addition to the cases mentioned above, deliberate over-indebtedness also constitutes insolvency fraud if impending insolvency or externally initiated insolvency proceedings are known. Our private detectives from Frankfurt/Main report a nationwide practice among fraudsters who, driven by desperation or greed, continue to purchase expensive goods or stocks—often on credit and using falsified proof of liquidity—despite knowing that they will never be able to repay these debts. The falsification of financial statements to influence one’s own insolvency proceedings is also punishable. If any of these offenses are proven, penalties include fines or imprisonment of up to five years.

 

Furthermore, any sudden gifting or premature transfer of assets intended to artificially reduce apparent wealth is prohibited under the same penalties, as it serves solely to deceive insolvency administrators and creditors about the true value of assets. The aim is often to reclaim these “gifts” later in order to escape debt more quickly or—more frequently—to continue living a lavish lifestyle despite substantial liabilities. Our detectives from Frankfurt a. M. also warn that not only successfully completed offenses are punishable, but even the mere attempt carries the same penalty.

Defrauded Private Individuals Face Particular Challenges, but There Are Alternatives

Not only business partners, companies and creditors are affected by insolvency fraud; private individuals are also regularly deceived, according to the experience of our detective agency in Frankfurt am Main. For example, if someone purchases an expensive car, makes a down payment or even pays in full, and then—after weeks or months of silence—receives notice that the seller has filed for insolvency, insolvency fraud can generally be assumed. This is a typical scam in car sales. The seller exploits the buyer’s lack of knowledge about their financial difficulties and impending insolvency by accepting payment for a high-value item they never intend to deliver. On the contrary, within insolvency proceedings, the seller may even allow assets to be seized—often including the already “sold” vehicle, which legally no longer belongs to them. The sale is concealed from the insolvency administrator, and the received payment is retained—either to make initial repayments or for hidden personal investments excluded from the insolvency estate.

 

Joining an ongoing insolvency proceeding as an additional creditor is not only difficult for private individuals but often yields little success, as they usually find themselves at the end of a long line of prioritized creditors. Courts also provide limited guidance on further steps beyond standard reports submitted by the insolvency administrator. However, affected individuals often have a strong interest in obtaining a more detailed assessment of the fraudster’s situation. Access to case files requires hiring an attorney, which incurs additional costs, and only then can a decision be made as to whether legal action is worthwhile. What even an attorney cannot uncover, however, are hidden assets.

 

By engaging Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt/Main, such insolvency-relevant assets can be identified (real estate investigations, vehicle ownership, inherited assets, etc.). In addition, primarily through surveillance, we are able to determine whether the fraudster receives income from concealed activities (possibly undeclared work), rental income, pensions, shareholdings, dividends and more. If this is the case, our detectives in Hesse provide court-admissible evidence, thereby giving the injured party new opportunities to recover lost funds. Our commercial investigators can also identify the current owner of the vehicle mentioned in the example through vehicle ownership investigations. Thanks to Section 47 of the German Insolvency Code (InsO), separation rights, the defrauded car buyer can then insist that the vehicle does not belong to the insolvency estate and must be handed over. If the vehicle has instead been sold to another buyer, meaning the debtor collected payment twice, Section 48 InsO, substitute separation, provides further avenues for compensation.

How to Proceed in Case of Suspected Insolvency Fraud

If you or your company are affected by the actions of a suspected insolvency fraudster but have so far been unable to prove fraudulent conduct, engaging the services of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt/Main, which specializes in economic crime, is a viable option. Through detailed investigations and discreet surveillance of the debtor, it can quickly be determined whether fraud has occurred and whether the insolvency proceedings were initiated entirely for fraudulent purposes or whether assets were transferred in advance—abroad, to family members, into other business interests, etc. The investigative approach of our Frankfurt detectives draws on a wide range of methods and is flexibly adapted to each case, ensuring the most effective clarification possible: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Customer complaints about field service employee

After receiving several puzzled inquiries from customers asking about the whereabouts of a scheduled field representative, as well as subtle hints from colleagues, Mr. Kronberg, managing director of an outpatient care service, began to seriously question the integrity of one of his employees. He contacted Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main to have the suspect, Mr. Karben from Aschaffenburg, placed under surveillance during working hours in order to verify whether he was performing his duties properly in accordance with his recorded working hours (suspicion of working time fraud). In addition, Mr. Kronberg doubted the accuracy of the submitted expense reports of the field service employee; therefore, this suspicion (expense report fraud) was also to be investigated.

Uneventful day for our detectives in Aschaffenburg*

Before arriving in Aschaffenburg* to observe Mr. Karben, the investigators analyzed the surveillance environment and determined that the residence was located in a traffic-calmed residential street. Such situations always involve risk, even for experienced surveillance operatives, as residents tend to react sensitively to unfamiliar vehicles. Furthermore, motion detectors were installed around the house, illuminating a wide area at night. Multiple possible departure routes additionally complicated the work of our investigators from Frankfurt am Main. Despite these challenges, our team attempted to successfully balance maintaining visual contact and remaining inconspicuous.

 

According to the client’s organizational records, Mr. Karben was scheduled to have his first appointment at 08:30. However, the detectives observed no sign of him by that time. At 08:40, his wife left the house with two children, presumably taking them to school—yet the target individual remained unseen. Over the course of the day, investigators observed the wife returning, leaving again, bringing groceries into the house, disposing of glass bottles, and later picking up the children. Meanwhile, Mr. Karben’s company vehicle remained stationary in the driveway. Late in the afternoon, our detectives were instructed to end the surveillance and return the next day.

Field representative: working hours = leisure time?

When the investigators returned to Aschaffenburg the next morning, the company vehicle was still in the same place. First, there were again some activities by the wife, while the scheduled start of the target person’s workday at our commercial detective agency from Frankfurt a.M. slipped hour by hour into the past. Only shortly before noon did the detectives see their target for the first time. Mr. Karben got into the company vehicle, which had been provided to him exclusively for business trips, and headed onto the A3 toward Frankfurt. His driving style was not only leisurely but almost absurdly slow, which made the work of our Frankfurt detectives considerably more difficult, because following a car inconspicuously on the motorway that never drives faster than 100 km/h and is sometimes overtaken by trucks is anything but easy.

 

The trip led to the company headquarters of the clients of our Frankfurt commercial detectives. After an almost half-hour stay, Mr. Karben left the building again and revealed to our observers just how downright sloppily dressed he was: stained, far too baggy sweatpants, an old hoodie and sneakers – no one who cares about the well-being of his company would visit customers dressed like that. After returning to the company vehicle, the target of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt a.M. sat in the driver’s seat for a quarter of an hour and tapped away on his smartphone. Finally, the target vehicle moved again and drove toward Mr. Karben’s home address. Along the way, the field service employee interrupted the trip with the following activities one after another: a stop at a motorway service area to buy rolls and a drink, which he then consumed while driving, a visit to a Media Markt, which Mr. Karben left carrying several DVDs or Blu-rays, a visit to a dubious massage studio in Aschaffenburg, from which he returned to the vehicle after a good hour, and finally driving home and not appearing again until evening.

Friday at 13:00 End of Work: Short Surveillance by Our Detective Agency in Aschaffenburg*

The previous surveillance showed that Mr. Karben was not only working too little, but was completely inactive during working hours and therefore of no benefit to the employer paying him. In order to prove the regularity of these violations of the employment contract, a third surveillance operation by our detective agency in Aschaffenburg was scheduled. On that day, the target person visited a Volksbank branch, a courthouse, where he received a warning for parking in a no-parking zone, a mailbox into which Mr. Karben dropped a letter, and a private address that, according to the client, had no connection to the field service employee’s gainful employment. At none of these places did the target of our detectives from Frankfurt am Main remain longer than 25 minutes, and so at 13:00 it was already “end of work” – Mr. Karben did not leave the house again until evening.

Immediate Dismissal Including Demand to Return the Company Vehicle – Refused!

After the following weekend, the Aaden detectives from Frankfurt/Main were summoned to the client’s company headquarters. There, the managing director, Mr. Kronberg, handed them a letter addressed to the target person, in which the immediate dismissal was communicated. The private investigators were to personally serve the termination and a confirmation of receipt to be signed, so that the receipt of the dismissal could be witnessed. In addition, various company assets that had been entrusted to Mr. Karben for use were to be secured – including, among other things, the company vehicle.

 

Back in Aschaffenburg, the detectives rang the target person’s doorbell and were greeted at the entrance by him, wearing Adiletten. They introduced themselves by name and stated the reason for their visit, but the visibly surprised field service employee was in no way cooperative and refused to accept the termination letter. A look inside the house revealed considerable disorder to the private investigators, matching the target person’s shabby appearance. In response to the refusal of acceptance, the officers informed the fraudulent employee that they now had to involve the police. After a brief discussion in the operation vehicle, the Frankfurt private detectives called the police and learned that a patrol car was already on its way to the address, because the target person had called the police himself. Mr. Karben then told the officers a fairy tale about feeling threatened, but the police refused responsibility, since it was a civil matter. Mr. Karben then changed tactics and, in the presence of the police officers, proposed a peaceful settlement that included the handover of the company vehicle and other materials from the employer’s assets. After consulting with the client, the latter agreed.

Successful Vehicle Recovery to Frankfurt a. M.

At the agreed pickup appointment, the target person of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt, as feared, staged another farce. Mr. Karben claimed to have spoken with his lawyer, and the lawyer was of the opinion that the vehicle would only have to be returned at the end of the month (in three days) – apparently the meaning of the word “immediate” had not fully sunk in here. After some back and forth between the managing director and his lawyer on the one hand and the dismissed employee and his lawyer on the other, the instruction was finally given to our commercial detectives in Aschaffenburg* to take possession of the vehicle immediately and return it to the company headquarters. The resigned target person no longer resisted and handed over the company car together with some electronic devices and file folders. The detectives finally left Aschaffenburg heading toward Frankfurt and were able to close the case.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

*Notice*

Note: For reasons of discretion and data protection, the locations and certain personal details have been altered without changing the substance of the actual events.

 

*Note: All operations of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt are handled by our operations management in Frankfurt. We have a network of qualified, vetted investigators who can be on site for you within a short time.

Use of Illegal Substances by the Mother

Through a personal acquaintance with the chief detective of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main, Gabriele Ulott, Mr. Eppstein decided to seek assistance in a child custody dispute. He had been separated from his wife for several months, and both parents shared custody of their daughter Elsa. According to Mr. Eppstein, the main reason for the separation was his wife’s “gradual descent” into the drug scene. She had suffered a psychological breakdown two years prior, which was primarily treated with medication, and since then, she had not been able to refrain from mind-altering stimulants. Naturally, this is a disqualifying factor for exercising custody. Mr. Eppstein’s problem: he could not legally prove his ex-wife’s drug use.

 

Additionally, he had heard that Mrs. Eppstein was now living with a drug dealer. Such an association would obviously be detrimental to Elsa’s development. Therefore, the father contacted the managing director of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt/Main, requesting both the verification of the drug dealer suspicion and legally admissible evidence of illegal substance use by the child’s mother.

No Supervision of the Child During the Day?

Elsa was of kindergarten age, but contrary to Mr. Eppstein’s wishes she was not taken to kindergarten and stayed at home when the mother exercised custody. As a result, she had to be exposed there to all possible harmful influences almost around the clock. Our private detectives in Frankfurt am Main began observing Mrs. Eppstein on a Tuesday morning. Shortly after eight, the unemployed target person got into the car without Elsa and drove for a good half hour to a café, where she stayed chatting and drinking coffee until the afternoon. Who looked after the little girl during this time, or whether she was supervised by anyone at all, could not be determined, because both detectives from Frankfurt a.M. deployed had, as instructed, followed the target person. In order to clarify this point in further observations on the following days, the management of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt/Main decided to leave one investigator at the residence if the target person were to move about again without daughter Elsa.

Elsa Alone at Home | Inquiry by Detective

Wednesday: As on the previous day, the target person left her apartment in the morning and got into her vehicle — again without Elsa, but this time with a young gentleman (approx. late 20s), who had apparently spent the night at Mrs. Eppstein’s place. As agreed, one of our Frankfurt private detectives remained at the residence to determine whether Elsa would be cared for there. Mrs. Eppstein dropped her companion off in the northern station district and then drove back to yesterday’s café. We had no personnel left that day to follow the young man as well and check whether there were connections to the drug scene, because according to the client’s instructions it was first to be determined what Mrs. Eppstein was doing while she was actually supposed to be caring for Elsa. As on the previous day, the mother spent hour after hour chatting in the café.

 

Based on these findings, our detective who remained at the apartment was instructed to ring the doorbell in a pretextual manner to determine who was taking care of Elsa. At the signal, a child’s voice answered over the intercom, the investigator presented his cover story and asked whether the child could get the mother. She was not there. “Can you get another adult for me then?” the detective asked.

“No one else is here. I’m not supposed to talk to strangers either,” the girl answered shyly.

“Why are you doing it anyway?”

“Don’t tell my dad, please!”

“I won’t, I promise! Why are you doing it then?”

“Because it’s boring ... I thought you were Mom ...”

“Where is Mom, then?”

“Don’t know, she’ll be back later.”

 

Later was around eight o’clock; shortly before that, the young companion from the morning had also returned to the house.

While the child waits at home, the mother uses drugs.

The plan for Thursday was to focus more on the young man, because Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt a.M. had already established, in two out of two attempts up to that point, that Mrs. Eppstein was not taking care of her daughter during the day. Our plan seemed to be thwarted, because the target person did not drop off her companion today, but instead took him along to the aforementioned café. The management sacrificed one observer by sending him to the neighboring table: he was to determine what Mrs. Eppstein was doing there all day — in the end, not much at all.

 

Through displays of affection and also through the content of their conversations, the private detective from Frankfurt am Main seated at the neighboring table was able to verify that the two were a couple and lived together. Their conversations revolved around friends, appointments, Mr. Eppstein and trivialities; the mother apparently wasted no thought on daughter Elsa. The entire stay in the café lasted more than eight hours, and the investigator at the table had to be replaced in between so as not to attract attention. During this time, the couple disappeared together into the restroom twice. Their condition upon returning left no doubt that they had administered consciousness-altering substances to themselves in the restroom. After their lingering in the café, the target persons visited a bar for lunch/dinner and played billiards and other games there with friends while consuming alcohol. Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt/Main documented their return to the apartment and to Elsa only after ten o’clock at night, meaning the child had been alone at home for more than fourteen hours.

A Street Dealer of a Different Kind

The observations from the previous day had at least revealed a connection between the careless new “stepfather” and the drug scene, insofar as he was obviously a consumer of illegal narcotics. Whether he also dealt drugs was still open for Aaden Commercial Detective Agency on the Main at that point and therefore remained the investigative objective for further case handling. Fortunately, the target persons did us the favor on Friday of splitting up in the station district as they had already done on Wednesday. The Aaden detectives from Frankfurt a. M. did not follow Mrs. Eppstein and focused entirely on the young man, who, incidentally, before leaving had emptied the mailbox at Mrs. Eppstein’s residence with what was apparently his own key, further reinforcing the impression of a marriage-like partnership.

 

In the northern station district, which is still known today as a center of drug dealing in Frankfurt, the young man positioned himself on a street corner and repeatedly interacted with passersby: brief conversations, then a joint walk around the corner, where one disappeared into a house, only to come out again shortly afterward and separate. To our experienced Frankfurt private detectives, this behavior very clearly suggested drug dealing. After observing these events several times, another investigator was sacrificed, as he was to play a kind of decoy: he walked down the street toward the young man, looking at him meaningfully, and as he passed by, the suspected drug dealer asked the detective what he needed. “Coke” (street term for cocaine), was the answer. The young man nodded to the private investigator and indicated for him to follow. He led our decoy into the aforementioned house, told him in the hallway to wait a moment, went up to an upper floor and then returned with a bag:

“How much do you want?”

“1 gram is enough — how much?”

The dealer sized up the investigator of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main:

“90.”

“Nah, nah, no tourist price! 40.” This amount was set so low that the dealer would certainly refuse. No deal was reached and the young man started to curse, while the investigator left without a word.

Results of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

After one more operation on Saturday to strengthen the findings obtained so far, Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt a.M. summarized all findings for Mr. Eppstein:

 

• His estranged wife did not care for the shared child during the day and also did not commission any other person to do so. She therefore grossly neglected her maternal duties.
• Mrs. Eppstein maintained a new stable relationship, which she had concealed in the previous negotiations regarding maintenance and custody.
• Mrs. Eppstein was still using illegal narcotics — even during the time when she exercised custody.
• The new partner also used illegal narcotics.
• The new partner was dealing in illegal narcotics, apparently on a commercial scale.

Our detectives from Frankfurt/Main had therefore provided their client with a whole list of very strong arguments for a reorganization of custody in his favor.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Notice

Note: For reasons of discretion and data protection, the locations and certain personal details have been altered without changing the substance of the actual events.

A Lot of Money for Work in Germany

The Frankfurt red-light scene is famous and notorious — far beyond the borders of Hesse. Mr. Naris is Thai and commissioned Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt to check several addresses in the city. His life partner, also Thai, had been flying to Germany again and again for a few weeks at a time since the end of 2014, always at intervals of a few months. Allegedly, she could earn a great deal of money here in a special fusion restaurant and had to take advantage of this opportunity.

 

At first, the client of our Frankfurt private detectives no longer really believed her story and demanded proof, whereupon Ms. Samak, his life partner, sent him pictures of her alleged workplace and her apartment building, along with the respective addresses and the name of the restaurant. Mr. Naris now believed she could tell him a lot about places on the other side of the globe. Accordingly, Aaden Detectives Frankfurt took over the on-site verification.

Comparison: Photo and Reality

At the address of the alleged workplace of the target person there was indeed a small café, but no restaurant. The photo sent by Ms. Samak definitely does not show this address, but must have been taken elsewhere. Our detective from Frankfurt checked the surroundings but could not find the building from the photo anywhere. Finally, he went into the café at the address and inspected the staff: all of the employees looked Central European. He ordered a coffee and, under a pretext, asked the server about foreign employees, since Mr. Naris would have liked to know this information: a Dutch woman had once worked here, but that had been three years ago; otherwise there were only Germans here. Our Frankfurt private detective also asked about restaurants nearby, since the café only offered snacks. The server then gave him two addresses in the area. The investigator thanked her, quickly but unobtrusively finished his coffee, and visited the mentioned restaurants. These addresses, too, were not the buildings shown in the photo.

 

Meanwhile, through online research, the operations management of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt determined that there was another branch of the café in the city. Perhaps Ms. Samak had confused the addresses, perhaps the second café had a proper menu — both rather unlikely, but at least worth checking. Accordingly, our commercial detective from Frankfurt went to the branch address. But this building also did not match the photo, there were no hot meals here either, and again no foreigners were employed there.

New Lead via Google Image Search

Since the search for the workplace had initially been exhausted, our private investigator from Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt went to Ms. Samak’s alleged accommodation. The photo of this apartment was not taken from the outside, but from a window, meaning it did not show the building itself but the houses opposite. These, in turn, bore no resemblance whatsoever to those photographed at the known address in reality. Ms. Samak had therefore also given false information in this respect.

 

After uploading the photos to a secure, password-protected website, the operations management of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt conducted a Google image search. This produced no useful results for the photo of the residential address, but it did for the workplace: a building in the station district that could be found via a Google Maps entry for the restaurant located there. The operations management immediately sent the investigator to the indicated address. About twenty minutes later, the confirmation came: it was the building from the photo and there was indeed a restaurant there, although not with fusion cuisine. Our Frankfurt detective searched the surrounding area for the houses that could be seen from Ms. Samak’s supposed apartment. Two side streets away, he found what he was looking for — in Elbestraße, known to Frankfurt residents as a center for paid sex.

Residential Address in the Red-Light District = Prostitute?

An online check of the address in Elbestraße produced several hits for prostitutes who could allegedly be reached there. One was supposed to ring a specific name on a floor matching the photo angle and would then be let in. Our private detective from Frankfurt did exactly that: a very friendly female voice answered the intercom. The investigator asked whether Melissa (the name of a prostitute who, according to the internet, had worked here in the previous year) was currently available, and was told that Melissa was off duty this week. The situation therefore seemed clear: Ms. Samak’s chance to earn money in Germany lay in offering sexual services. She had probably simply used the photo of the alleged workplace because the restaurant was around the corner from her apartment. She must have given the addresses incorrectly, since the nature and extent of Frankfurt’s red-light district is easy to research on the internet (at least in German and certainly also in our language of communication with the client of Aaden Detectives Frankfurt, namely English).

Observation of the Life Partner upon her Next Arrival in Frankfurt

Mr. Naris was naturally shocked when he heard the investigative results and the obvious conclusions. However, he wanted absolute certainty: in two and a half weeks Ms. Samak would again travel to Germany for a good month, and she would then need to be observed to make sure. Through numerous past assignments at Frankfurt Airport, Aaden Detectives Frankfurt has extensive routine and precise local knowledge of the site. The operational planning was therefore not complicated, but it was nevertheless carried out meticulously and checked several times.

 

On the day of Ms. Samak’s arrival, three of our investigators went to the airport. Two monitored the arrivals hall, where travelers from the flight named by Mr. Naris were expected to gather; the third case manager waited outside in the car near the taxis in order to react immediately if the target person departed quickly. The target person of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt entered the arrivals area alone, but was picked up there by a broad-shouldered male person. The greeting took place without physical contact. Both then went to the short-term parking area, where one of our detective vehicles was also parked. The colleague in the taxi area carefully positioned himself in traffic so that, in the event of departure from the short-term parking lot, he could follow immediately or “cut off the route” and thus begin the surveillance. Accordingly, the teams observed the target person and her pickup driver with two vehicles on the way to downtown Frankfurt. Not surprisingly, the trip ended in the red-light district and Ms. Samak entered the previously identified address in Elbestraße.

Personal Visit by the Detective to the Establishment

To eliminate every last doubt, the operations management of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt researched the advertisements for the known address in the following days. In fact, an ad was placed here for a Thai woman, but under a different name and with pictures that did not show the face or were pixelated. The investigator who had been active before therefore could not avoid an appointment with the woman being advertised. He was let in and introduced to the woman — it was unmistakably Ms. Samak. After this final confirmation, our Frankfurt detective pretended to have changed his mind, which earned him some hostile looks and comments from the receptionist, and left the establishment. Mr. Naris was immediately informed of the findings. The assignment was therefore completed.

Notice

Note: For reasons of discretion and data protection, the locations and certain personal details have been altered without changing the substance of the actual events.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Mr. Conrad (name changed) was the owner of a beautiful, high-value classic car from Fiat. After his previous auto mechanic retired, Mr. Conrad—who would later consult Aaden Detectives Frankfurt—had to look for a new workshop. Encouraged by online advertising, he found a mechanic in Frankfurt and, after arranging an appointment by phone, brought his vehicle directly to the company’s premises. The classic car had no known defects; only a routine inspection and an oil change were to be carried out. By the next morning at the latest, the future client of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt could pick up his Fiat, the master mechanic explained—provided no major defects were identified during the inspection. In that case, the workshop would of course contact Mr. Conrad.

The Mechanic Claims to Have Never Seen Mr. Conrad

The workshop did not respond the next day or on any of the following five days. Mr. Conrad visited in person several times but was never able to meet the mechanic. Most of the time, the workshop was completely closed; on one occasion, an apparent office employee assured him that “the boss” would contact him shortly. Nothing happened. And Mr. Conrad’s classic car was nowhere to be seen on the premises. Eventually, the future client of Aaden Private Detective Agency Frankfurt had had enough and filed a report with the police.

 

Shortly thereafter, the police visited the workshop and encountered only the aforementioned office employee. Due to the authority of the officers, it did not take long before the master mechanic—having been informed by the office employee—appeared. However, he stated that he had never seen or heard of Mr. Conrad or his Fiat classic car. Mr. Conrad, in turn, had no written proof of having handed over his vehicle to the workshop, which is why the police terminated their involvement. A few hours later, Mr. Conrad met with the commercial detectives of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt for a commissioning discussion.

Operational Plan of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt

After the client described his case to us, our Frankfurt detectives quickly developed an investigative strategy to locate and recover the vehicle. An express preliminary investigation revealed that the target individual was experiencing significant financial difficulties and might use the vehicle to settle debts.

 

In step 1, a pretextual appointment with the master mechanic was to be arranged by phone. One of our detectives provided a private vehicle for this purpose and stated to the mechanic that he wished to bring it in for repairs. The meeting between the investigator and the target individual was, of course, observed by two of his colleagues from Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt. When the supposed interested party terminated the conversation with the target individual on the grounds that he had different price expectations, step 2 of the operational plan followed: surveillance of the target individual, which our detectives hoped would lead them to the location of the Fiat classic car. Beforehand, the undercover investigator had ensured that the vehicle was not located anywhere in the workshop.

Surveillance: Second Workshop Discovered

Only a few minutes after our detective left the workshop premises in his private vehicle, the target individual locked up and drove away in a car—followed by the surveillance operatives of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt. Initially, the mechanic drove to an inconspicuous residential address and remained there for several hours. A search of the surroundings yielded no clues regarding the sought vehicle. Later in the early afternoon, however, the target individual went to another workshop and apparently carried out work there. The Fiat was not visible, but large storage areas inside the workshop could be assumed, where the sought classic car could very well have been located.

 

One of our detectives from Frankfurt therefore abandoned his cover in step 3 and entered the workshop using a suitable pretext. He received extensive consultation and was shown around the interior, where a Fiat classic car of the same type and color quickly caught his attention. Although the license plate had been removed, it was with the highest probability the target object. The investigator succeeded in obtaining numerous covert pieces of evidence.

Identification and Return of the Embezzled Vehicle

Equipped with the photographic material, our Frankfurt private detective contacted Mr. Conrad and suggested that they go together to the police to present the evidence and inform them of the likely location of the embezzled vehicle (step 4). Meanwhile, another surveillance operative maintained visual control of the premises to ensure that the Fiat would not be moved in the meantime.

 

After consulting with the police, Mr. Conrad, a team of officers, and our detective in Frankfurt returned to the target location, where Mr. Conrad identified his missing car and provided proof of ownership using the vehicle identification number. The police seized the vehicle and immediately returned it to its rightful owner. The perpetrator now faced criminal prosecution.

Notice

Note: For reasons of discretion and data protection, the locations and certain personal details have been altered without changing the substance of the actual events.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Cash Sales without Receipts?

A company that manufactures and distributes specialty products for industrial and DIY needs sought the support of Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt, as one of the employees in the warehouse/store was suspected of selling products for cash without issuing receipts and pocketing the money. The suspicion our Frankfurt detectives were to investigate was therefore embezzlement and fraud.

Significant Revenue Deficit for the Target Person

Mr. M. had been working for the clients of Aaden Detectives Frankfurt for about a year, alternating shifts with another worker. The store was not permanently staffed, as both employees regularly had to make deliveries. It did not take long before it became apparent that during Mr. M.’s working hours, significantly lower revenues were consistently generated than during the shifts of his colleague. This could not be attributed to different working hours, as these had become nearly identical after a few months. Consequently, the clients of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt concluded that Mr. M. was either taking excessive breaks and was unavailable to customers or was diverting money into his own pocket.

Laziness or Cash Theft?

Through random phone calls and personal visits, the employer checked whether the suspected employee was performing his duties at the correct times. In addition to a consistently accurate time card, Mr. M. was always either reachable in the store or via mobile phone in the delivery van (engine noises made the field activity appear plausible). The clients of our commercial detectives in Frankfurt concluded that Mr. M.’s working hours were properly fulfilled and that he must therefore be embezzling money, as there was no other explanation for the cash discrepancies. Test purchases by the Frankfurt private detectives of Aaden were now intended to provide certainty.

Test Purchase: Why Use a Detective?

The procedure for such a test purchase conducted by detectives is relatively simple: the investigator enters the store, receives advice, buys something (possibly under a cover identity), pays in cash, observes whether a receipt is issued, and watches whether the cash is placed in the register or elsewhere. So why hire a detective for such a simple task? Couldn’t a friend or relative do it? No, they could not. The results of a test purchase are fundamentally based on witness testimony. Private investigators like the detectives of Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt are neutral witnesses with no personal relationship to their clients. For this reason, their statements are far more credible in court than those of a friend or relative.

Test Purchases by Aaden Detectives Frankfurt

In this case, our Frankfurt detective proceeded exactly according to this method. The target person asked whether a receipt was needed, which the investigator confirmed, stating that the order was for his boss. Normally, however, he purchased items for personal use. The employee properly placed the cash in the register. However, the mere act of asking whether a receipt was required was already improper, as company policy stipulates that every customer must automatically be issued a receipt without being asked. If the customer does not want it, they can simply leave it behind.

 

This initial test purchase by Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt was intended to determine whether the employee complied with internal policies. In addition, the commercial investigator aimed to build trust with the target person in order to conduct another test purchase “for personal use” a few days later. This time, our Frankfurt private detective did not request a receipt and was able to observe how the money was placed next to the register. Mr. M. even offered the investigator a discount for paying without a receipt.

Sales Not Recorded in Accounting

These test purchases by Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt were repeated three more times over a period of four weeks: once again by the same detective and the other times by different operatives in order to provide multiple witnesses. The result was always the same: the target person asked whether a receipt should be issued, and since this was always declined, the cash was not placed in the register but set aside. The approach of the target person when “sounding out” buyers varied. Mr. M. often did not directly ask whether a receipt was needed, but approached the topic indirectly by asking, for example, which company the invoice should be issued to. The response that no invoice was needed because the items were for personal use was clearly to his liking.

 

In the following month, the client company was able to check in its accounting records whether the test purchases for which no receipts had been issued had been recorded. The result was negative, as expected, thereby conclusively proving the embezzlement.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824

Significant Media Interest in Detective Agencies

The profession of detective attracts particular media interest in film, television and literature. Newspapers, magazines and websites also frequently and gladly cover the detective trade, regularly interviewing private detectives from Frankfurt or other parts of the country. Considering the relatively modest revenue of the profession and the limited number of permanently active investigators, media interest in detectives is clearly disproportionate. This special attention also carries risks for the profession, as it is not regulated by licensing, and unqualified investigative work can quickly damage the reputation of the entire profession. For this reason, the Aaden Commercial Detective Agency Frankfurt would like to take a closer look here at the licensing and training of detectives in Hesse and Germany.

Pseudo-Courses Undermine Serious Detective Training

Since the founding of the first professional associations for detectives in Germany around 1900, there has been an effort to distinguish qualified and ethically operating detectives from the dubious "corner detectives." This was intended, among other things, to be achieved through licensing of the detective profession, which was never implemented nationwide, but above all through binding qualification opportunities via various distance learning courses.

 

Because, up until Hitler’s rise to power and even after the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany, countless private investigators in Frankfurt and elsewhere established detective schools or institutes offering distance learning detective training in order to issue worthless diplomas, the efforts of serious detectives to ensure high-quality, uniform training for detectives were intensified and implemented in a first step with the founding of the BDD Training Institute in 1957.

ZAD Distance Learning Course for Detectives

The Bund Deutscher Detektive (BDD), founded in 1950, made efforts to distinguish capable detectives from untrustworthy ones, as there continued to be, or again since the end of the war, too much negative press about the detective trade in Germany, including detectives in Frankfurt. The BDD Training Institute provided comprehensive materials for instruction in the detective profession and regularly organized events with lectures and seminars on current and general topics related to the work of detectives. However, the association’s policies did not always develop transparently or fairly, which led to increasing dissent within the industry and the founding of several rival associations. The most significant of these new associations is the BID, Bund Internationaler Detektive, based in Cologne. Thanks to it, we have the most important and probably best training for private detectives in Germany to this day: the Central Office for Training in the Detective Trade (ZAD). However, even the ZAD and the BID could not achieve state licensing.

Increased Requirements for Private Detectives

With regard to increasingly strict data protection regulations, the associated legal requirements for detective agencies such as Aaden Detective Agency Frankfurt, and the reduction in the number and qualification of police forces, thorough training and licensing of private detectives may be more important today than ever. Yet despite numerous efforts by the associations since the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany, no progress has been made to date. Politics remains indifferent.

Aaden Corporate Detective Agency Frankfurt am Main

Barckhausstraße 1

D-60325 Frankfurt am Main

Tel.: +49 69 1201 8454-0

Fax: +49 69 1201 8454-9

E-Mail: info@aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de

Web: https://aaden-detektive-frankfurt.de/en

 

CEO: Maya Grünschloß, PhD

Register Court: Amtsgericht Köln

Registration Number: HRB 83824